Picture of a Pump in a Skimmer.
Q: I plan to shut down my water garden in the Winter. What do I do with the pump? Do I just leave it in the water garden or do I remove it? – Don of New York
A: This is one of the top questions I get heading into the Late Fall and Winter months.
Remove the Pump: If you plan to shut down your water garden for the Winter months, I would suggest you remove the pump entirely. If you leave the pump in the water garden it has the potential to freeze, which can cause irreversible damage.
Keep the Pump Submerged When Storing: Remove the pump, submerge it into a 5-gallon bucket filled with water. Store the bucket in a place where the water will not freeze (i.e. basement, heated garage, etc.). If you don’t keep the pump submerged in water and it dries out, there is a possibility that the seals inside the pump could crack causing the pump not to work properly later on.
Filed under: WG-Winterizing, Water Gardens & Features | Tagged: pond pump, pond pumps, Pump, pumps, water garden pump, water garden pumps
Sdtoring the pump wet may not be the wisest approach. You should check the manufacturer’s recommendation. I had a Tsunami pump which I stored wet because that is what I was told to do by the installer of my pond. The pump bound up. When I spoke to the manufacturer they told me to store it dry and and I’ve had no problems and a long life with the second pump.
Good Morning, I read what you are saying about Ponds and I am Looking forward to doing Bussiness this Spring. I am asking why I receive 2 e-mails every time. Just Courious.
Phillip Scare,
I apologize for that. I checked with our marketing team and it seems that they is only one e-mail address in our system. I will have to keep an eye on that.
Thanks for the heads up!
David Paveglio,
I will agree that it is wise to double check with the manufacturer. Based on the pumps that we sell, we have always suggested, and so has our manufacturers, to keep the pump submerged when removing.
I also should have been more clear in the post. You don’t want to store an EXTERNAL/CENTRIFUGAL pump underwater…it probably not going to work come spring if you do that. But a SUBMERSIBLE pump, yes….unless the manufacturer says otherwise!
Thanks for your post, I appreciate it David!
I leave my small submerged waterfall pump running all winter, and that works out fine. However, I was told to always remove my biofilter pump in the winter. Is it possible to leave this in the pond and keep it running all winter? The pond is 20″ deep and doesn’t freeze solid.
Donna Soule,
The key, when it comes to leaving your bio-filter running during the winter, is to make sure it doesn’t freeze. The pump will probably be alright in the depth of 20″, but its the external bio-filter that you may have an issue with. I would recommend draining, removing and storing the bio-filter for the winter. You won’t need it anyway, do to the fact that the fish will not be excreting much waste during the winter.
Anyone have any other thoughts on this?
WE DISCONNECT THE WATERFALL, UV LIGHT AND BIO FILTER BOX FIRST THING IN OCTOBER. THE WATER HOSES ARE DIRECTED RIGHT INTO THE POND AT EACH END TO HELP KEEP THE WATER CIRCULATING SO IT DOESNT FREEZE UNLESS ITS FRIGID. WE CLEAN AND STORE THE BIO FILTER FOR THE WINTER IN SHED OPEN SO IT DOESNT GET MOLDY AND DRYS OUT. I ALSO LEAVE MY PUMP IN MY SKIMMER GOING ALL WINTER ITS 23″ DOWN BUT IF THE TEMPS ARE GONNA BE FREEZING I PULL THE PUMP OUT USUALLY FOR ABOUT A MONTH IN FEBRUARY AND THEN PUT IT BACK WHEN IT WARMS UP.EVEN IF I USE THE HEATER TO BREAK UP THE ICE. I PUT A NET OVER THE WHOLE POND CHEAP CHERRY TREE NET TO KEEP THE LEAVES FROM GETTING IN POND. YOU CANNOT USE THE CHEAPER NET IF YOU GET ALOT OF DEBRIS. DOING THESE SMALL THINGS MAKE THE SPRING OPENING A SNAP TO DO.
Vicky, Thanks for the tip. Pond netting does help keep a lot of debris out of the pond, especially in the fall as the leaves are falling. Many customers do continue to run their pump throughout the winter, however as I’m sure you’ve seen, you do have to keep an eye on it to watch for ice build up. As the water starts to freeze, the available water under the ice surface will drop. This could cause your pump to run dry if it is in a skimmer. Have you considered using an aeration/bubbler system for the winter instead of a heater or pump? You can suspend the air stones just below the water surface to allow oxygen exchange and circulation. In my experience, this also keeps the hole in the ice better than the heater. The other benefit of a bubbler is that you are only pumping air and not water, so you don’t have to worry about the lines freezing.
[...] Also, when lowering the water level below the skimmer, make sure to drain the skimmer out entirely. Allowing the water in the skimmer to freeze could cause damage to the skimmer itself. The same goes for the waterfall filter. As for what to do with the pump, here is a link to a previous post. [...]
We have a pump in a pond at the end of our stream that is covered with rocks. Do we have to remove it during the winter?
Hey George,
I usually recommend removing the pump altogether just to make sure it doesn’t freeze during the winter.
If you have to leave your pump in your water garden all winter long, I would just make sure it is submerged around 24″ underwater and you should be okay.
What about the fish, so how do they breathe. I lft mine in all last winter with no problems.
Stephen Zimmett,
Fish breathe through their gills by extracting oxygen from the water. As for the winter, usually fish are just fine. The only issue that can arise is when a toxic build-up of gases underneath the ice reach lethal levels. To combat this, we use a de-icer or pond heater to keep a hole open in the ice.
OKAY…we are brand new in the pond/fish world this year and this is the first winter for us. (Winchester, VA) From what I’m reading, I should put my bio-filter inside, and I’m okay to leave my pump in 4-5 feet of water this winter and it won’t hurt it? Also, I should leave the pump running and keep the hoses in the water to keep the circulation and the surface from freezing…Can anyone confirm my thoughts on this? In addition, is there a special way to clean my bio-filter for storage? It’s actually a GORGEOUS day outside today, so we are winterizing now…hopefully its not too early for our ginnea pig gold fish : ) (Hope the poor things survive the winter at the hands of an amateur!)
Hi Kandi,
If your pump is located directly in the pond and not in a skimmer, make sure that it is located in at least 24″ of water. Do not place the pump on the very bottom of the pond (your fish go to the bottom to hibernate during the winter). You want to leave this water undisturbed and warmer for your fish.
You can remove your pump, immerse it in a 5 gallon bucket of water and store it a heated garage or basement. Take the filter mats out of your bio filter, clean and store them in your garage. Drain all water out of the waterfall / bio-filter box, plumbing and skimmer (if you have one) to protect them from damage caused by freezing temperatures.
An aeration unit will keep a hole on the surface of your water and add oxygen to your pond during the winter months. This is the most energy efficient way to winterize your pond. Pond de-icers will also keep a hole open on the surface of your pond to let the toxic gases escape during the winter months. They can be used with or without an aeration unit.
If using an aeration unit, place the air stones of the aeration kit in a shallower part of your pond, leaving the deeper part of your pond undisturbed.