Winterize Your Water Feature
by Robert Nordyke, Gertens Pond Barn staff
As fall turns to winter, begin preparations for care of your water feature
It's that time of year to winterize your outdoor living spaces. Between the final mowing of the yard and firing up the snow blower, don't forget about your water feature. A few simple steps this fall will save you time and money next spring.
Since there many varieties of water features, ranging from a small container through large ponds, this article will focus on the smaller end of the spectrum. If you have a large open water pond you will want to consult one of our pond experts for more specific direction of your individual needs.
Smaller end open water ponds are those with 200 gallons or less (and no fish involved) and all pond free situations. These water features do not require any kind of "bacterial eco-system" balance, but they do require winterizing. You cannot just let them take care of themselves, because they won't. So, let's get to it.
Remove Plants
First you need to remove any plants. If you have any water plants in your feature now is the time to think about what you are going to do with them. Are you going to "winter them over" or not? Since "wintering over" can be tricky with many tropicals, I recommend discussing this with our pond experts. Whether you decide to "winter over" or not, you should remove the plants at first frost.
Decide whether you wish to over-winter your plants, or simply throw them away. Keeping the pond clean and free from debris can prevent algae, chemical and pump damage to your water feature.
Clean Thoroughly
With the plants out of the way, the next step is cleaning. This part can be a little messy. You need to remove any large debris from the bottom of the pond or, if pond free, the bottom of the pump vault. If there is algae present, you will want to use GreenClean (or any like product). GreenClean is a granular contact algaecide that is water activated -- follow the directions printed on the bottle. If you decide to drain the feature and scrub it, be sure to refill the feature with water before winter sets in.
GreenClean is water activated, and will remove that pesky algae. Once algae is gone, ensure that your feature has water and you are done!
Final steps
When winterizing your water feature, the most important thing to remember is: REMOVE THE PUMP! Water pumps must not be allowed to freeze! Water freezing around a pump exerts pressure on the outside casing which creates cracks. These cracks allow water to enter the inside workings and corrode the electrical workings and...let's leave it at – remove the pump!
These few simple steps will save you time and money in the spring when you want to start up your water feature. With proper winter preparation and seasonal maintenance your water feature should give you years of enjoyment.
The experts at Gertens are always available to answer your questions!