pounding shocks and kills the fish. use a reciprocating saw. Ingrid

(MC) wrote:

Even though we have had many 60+ days here in Chicago, my small pond
(500 gallons) still is 2/3 covered with ice about 5 inches thick. I am
thinking it will take at least a month to thaw. Is there any harm in
trying to "break" it into smaller chunks using hot water so I can
remove them? Will this disturb the Koi too much or should I just be
patient? I am anxious to get the pond up in the 50s to do my spring
clean out.