How to Prepare Your Koi Pond for Stormy Weather
Natural catastrophes are inevitable. Hence, it is every Koi keeper’s responsibility to keep his pond safe and secure even during the occurrence of bad weather.
Small Storms
Smaller storms are easier to handle than larger ones. Here are some steps to guide you in how to protect your pond through this weather.
Do not feed your fish. And don’t worry about your fish not having enough to eat. Your pond has natural food sources available for your Koi. In the event that the storm will break your filtration system, not feeding your fish will minimize the risk of ammonia problems later.
Try to change the water before the storm comes. This way, your fish will still have fresh water even if you are unable to attend to it right after the storm. Have space for the coming rainfall and to minimize the chances of having your pond overflowing while the storm is at its peak. Check your drainage system of anything that may block it during these unfriendly weather. At ground level and with high waters expected, your pond will need to have additional protection. Sand bagging the area will be wise.
Protect your pond from flying debris by putting a net over it. You may use the same net you have to keep the leaves from falling; just make sure you have it properly secured.
Check the surrounding of the pond and remove all things that may be blown away, over, or fall into the pond. Common sense will tell you that if you can push it, so can the wind.
Large Storms
Larger storms will pose bigger problems for your pond—and your fish. As some precautionary measures may prove ineffective in this severe weather, it would be wiser to just remove the Koi from the pond.
Transporting your Koi will be a very sensitive matter for them; hence, you should have your equipment and materials ready for this task.
Have the proper bags on hand for transferring your Koi. Using regular bags for this task may cause more harm than good to your fish. This also means that you need to have the bags of the right sizes that will fit your Koi.
Quality rubber bags will be needed to close out your bags with the fish.
A sizeable net is good to use to lead or direct your fish to where exactly you want them to go. Remember, you don’t need the need to catch them as your net may harm your fish.
Get a paint bucket. This will provide a better option for catching the fish. Again, the size of your paint bucket must also be considered, and it must be thoroughly cleaned beforehand.
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