filter running in winter?

by Jordan
(BloomField Hills Michigan)

i live on the edge of zones 6 and 5. the winters get really cold for a little bit here. would it be to much of a risk to run a fast waterfall (filter at top) and skimmer at these cold temps? and if it is, should i use the waterfall pump,disconnected from filter, with it's hose to keep water moving at the surface of the pond with no filtration what-so-ever during winter. should i take my filter iside if i can?

if you can answer some of these questions it would be a big help! thanks.

Doug says that he does indeed know gardeners who run their pumps and filter all winter. It can be quite lovely if things don't freeze solid.

You have to really watch the pond because ice dams can form quickly that divert the water out of the pond (over the edge of the waterfall) and your pond / pump can run dry fairly quickly. This is a sure fire way to really screw up the ecology of the pond not to mention the lives of any fish etc in there.

If your pond plumbing is large enough to handle the flow without freezing, then you're fine. I don't know your plumbing sise so can't say one way or the other.

But generally speaking - yes it can be done and is being done by systems that were designed and maintained to do exactly this.

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Now, if you can take your filter indoors, this means you don't have a bio-filter sitting on the ground as part of the landscaping and waterfall, but rather something that's attached directly to the pump. In this case, remove the filter and allow the pump to run to keep a section of ice clear for your fish. If no fish, let the entire thing freeze and don't run the pump unless you want the look of running water.

Hope that's clear. It can work but it depends on the system you have.