Do Pond Covers Really Make a Difference??

[@darrenhoare5869]

Hi Jamie, never covered my pond in 23 years. Haven't lost a fish over winter yet and no plans to cover in the future.

[@keepingitkoi]

Absolutely 100% bud I used to cover but after discovering they don't need it these last few years I'm definitely leaving it off 😊

[@boxtriker]

Hard to go thing its down to the pond and person when uncovered with my first pond it iced over most years filters iced up pain in the ass to keep clear I'm high-up on a hill it catch's the wind as well so slowing up the temp rise and fall and covers have stopped this on this pond and filters

[@keepingitkoi]

Absolutely mate if you pond freezes over then would definitely recommend something mine though got down to -2c without freezing over so for now I'll be leaving the covers off 😊

[@K.W.P.R]

The problem we have in this country is winter temperature stability, it would be less of an issue if in winter it got cold and stayed cold , but it doesn’t, it can be -2 one day and 12 degrees the next , we all know koi are poikilothermic which means they can’t control their body temp , what they do have are a range of enzymes that control their metabolic rate , when the temperature changes for one enzyme it switch’s of and the next one steps up and takes it place , basically controlling the urge to feed or not and being able to digest that food , now rapid temp changes , bearing in mind a pond is a small shallow body of water , can confuse the switching of these enzymes (we have all heard of temp swings of 2 deg or more upset your koi) . Now by adding good quality polycarbonate covers will first stop the wind chill from rapidly cooling the water and for those saying it will only be at the top , don’t forget in the uk we keep our pumps turning , secondly they will hold the heat in for a while if your unheated slowing any temperature drop giving your koi more time to adapt , also think of the cold rain or snow your keeping out , so do you need to no , but if you do it can save a lot of grief

[@keepingitkoi]

Your absolutely right in all those points bud but my koi have been through all the fluctuations this year again without any issues same as last year and its so nice watching them all year round I'm leaving the covers off 😊

[@1973cashy]

Nice one Jamie. Yep, no cover but I do put a tarp over the roof to block the wind at the sides.

[@keepingitkoi]

Yes bud no harm in that 👍 no harm in covering either but I just don't think they need it 😊

[@Sharpeyskoi]

i used to get more issues when i used to cover my pond so now i dont bother. and i havnt had any winter issues since i uncovered

[@keepingitkoi]

To be honest bud so did I it's only been these last 2 years I haven't covered and both years I've had no problems 😊 👍

[@DublinKoiPond]

100% Jamie. I'm not heated, but am covered and would say they're very much optional in my case. Two advantages I see are that they stop the temperature dropping quickly and keeps leaves out of the pond thus reducing maintanance. Storage can be an issue, but luckily I have space behind the garage.

[@keepingitkoi]

Absolutely mate all very good reasons but the drum takes the leaves out for me 😅 but yeh my fish are doing great even with the temperature changes so I'm leaving the covers off although I do still have the cover just incase we get ridiculously cold one day 😅

[@HumberKoi]

Nice one matey

[@keepingitkoi]

Thanks bud 👍

[@ACKoi]

Your pond's covered Jamie just with a load of crap 🤣 be nice to see your garden tidy this season 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽

[@keepingitkoi]

Thanks bud 👍

[@hazzardoutdoors]

Ah you are a norfolk chap too, literally just debating on whether it's worth knocking up some covers as I have a shed load of polycarbonate....

[@keepingitkoi]

Not far from Norfolk I'm Peterborough 👍

[@TelfordKoiPond]

Nice one Jamie👍. As far as covers are concerned I believe it’s a case of “horses for courses” but I do sometimes think I put covers on to make me feel better😂. Take care😊👍

[@keepingitkoi]

Exactly that mate they might help they might not 🤷 but my fishes are doing fine with out them for now 😊

[@countrykoipond]

I guess you are saying your air temp was -2c and not the water? What was the lowest temp of the water? I went down to 2.2c in the water this year in southwest somerset

[@keepingitkoi]

No I was saying last winter the water temps were -2c the air temps were -15c and below this year it only went down to 2c but last year was minus -2c

[@stubbsaquatics6080]

I wish I could cover mine . But mine are Draper.. No bragging about no snow.. 12 years ago... I can't remember 12 days ago😂 but it has been mild. You are lucky to be so moderate in temps

[@keepingitkoi]

Yeh we get very wet hear in the UK but temps are pretty good compared to some parts of the world 😊👍

[@andreashessler838]

Hi mate, your pond water temperature might be -2c at the surface (in which case it would be frozen like mine was this year!), but it wouldn't be that more than a couple of inches down. If that were the case, you would essentially have a large ice cube with fish in it. Typically, it gets down to about 4c at the bottom of a 3' pond and they can deal with that without too many issues. That is unless you're talking about living in -20c, -30c that sort of weather. I completely agree with you on not covering or heating though. I've never done it. Just don't feed below 10c.

[@keepingitkoi]

No that's going by the water coming into the drum as the drum has the thermometer reading so it's the temperature coming through the bottom drain at the bottom of the pond 👍😊 and yes last winter we did hit -18c a few times 👍

[@sweetkoiyo]

💯 percent spot on Jamie. I have covers, but am in an area that can get -30 to -40 c at times. I also have high winds. If I had your temps, I wouldn't cover mine either. Like you said, just to maintain adult Koi, they don't need a cover, with temps like you have, and a pond such as yours. Fry, yeah that's different. I agree. Great video as always Jamie. 👍

[@keepingitkoi]

That's bud yeh I knew this video people will either agree or strongly disagree but it's just my opinion if heated yes I would cover but otherwise I wouldn't bother 😊👍

[@carollycett1329]

Nice update Andy

[@keepingitkoi]

Jamie 😉 but thanks Carol 😊

[@richardbrunton2068]

Just a thought , what is the point in paying out for celutex insulation for the walls of pond if you don’t cover the pond , just my opinion, but absolutely pointless? Cheers though for video 👍

[@keepingitkoi]

Very good point to be fair bud but like I said I have a cover just incase because when building the pond I had then intention that I was going to cover only after finding out from my own experiences I've decided I don't need to but I have a cover just incase we ever get some freak minus temps and one day I may need to but for now with the temps we get down to -10 to -15 at night at the very coldest my fish are absolutely fine 😊

[@richardbrunton2068]

@@keepingitkoi cheers for reply Jamie, it is a debatable subject. All the best👍

[@keepingitkoi]

@richardbrunton2068 absolutely bud same as salt I guess 🤷

[@garryrobson3634]

Another reason for adding celotex is to give you something smooth and quick to fibreglass against 👍

[@garryrobson3634]

Like Dublin koi has said, covers also help stabilise the water temps. It depends on the size and location of the pond though. I have a Seneye which logs a temp reading every 30mins, when I added the balls I didn't get as much variance between day and night temps. So I think covers give you a more stable temperature.

[@AndysKoiPuddle]

Yeah, probably a lot of truth in what you are saying mate… 👍🏼 I cover for different reasons. ie condensation being indoors 👍🏼

[@keepingitkoi]

Yes absolutely mate not about the heat when indoors condensation can be a nightmare

[@KeefesKoiHaven]

Personally I’ve never covered my pond during winters and never had problems. Definitely though, if I lived where there was extreme temps & high winds (like Christine @Sweet Acres Koi Farm has) then yes I’d be covering it. Interesting subject and great video Jamie. Would be good test to see difference of pond temps if had 2 identical ponds: one was covered and one wasn’t. Hmm but that would mean digging another pit and I don’t think I’m ready to do that anytime soon 😅😂😂

[@keepingitkoi]

Haha yeh it would be good to see how much of a difference it would make but the ponds would need to be identical and I'd have no garden left 😅

[@westbromkoi]

Good update Jamie. I put covers on mine, purely because I’ve got a heater on that keeps the temp steady between 7 and 8 degrees 👍🏼👌🏼

[@keepingitkoi]

Yes as I said if I was heating then that's the only reason I would cover now otherwise the heater would just be wasting money 💰 😊

[@markdiablo4601]

Put a heater on my koi pond problem solved

[@keepingitkoi]

That would do the job 😊👍