Oh wait.... Wit if the piping in the spa heater is made of copper and bronze? I heard copper isnt good for koi but I don't kno about my RTC....
red tail catfish in cold pond help
- Thread starter cubanboy1538
- Start date
A hot tub is only about 400 - 500 gallons. Hot tub heater will not be able to keep up since you have 2000 gallons. You will end up burning up the element on the heater and then the temp will drop, and then you have a frozen catfish. Honestly you are better to put him inside for winter. But if you are parents are cool about a $1000 electric bill to keep a catfish alive, get a pond heater.
http://www.highdesertkoi.com/ go under accessories and he has the coates heater, one of the best heaters for ponds if you wanna use electric.
Also if you are gonna cover your pond you will really need to cover it good, so the air above the pond can stay warm also. You will be heating the water, but you will want to keep the warmth from the water contained. Look for a green house, or the heavey plastic or carbonate panels they use.
http://www.highdesertkoi.com/ go under accessories and he has the coates heater, one of the best heaters for ponds if you wanna use electric.
Also if you are gonna cover your pond you will really need to cover it good, so the air above the pond can stay warm also. You will be heating the water, but you will want to keep the warmth from the water contained. Look for a green house, or the heavey plastic or carbonate panels they use.
There is this 11kw thermakoi heater thing and that looks good and if I cover up the pond and do the green house (I really like the green house idea) mayb it won't caost as much
Put plain and simple...there is no cheap way to heat 2000gal of water in a climate that cold. Get used to the idea of spending hundreds a month if u want to continue down this path. That's why there are a bunch of threads asking how to keep a pond warm for cheap.....but not a single one saying "hey I found a way to heat my outdoor pond for cheap!"
Haaha oh yeah dude dont use the whole hotub just the heater pump. Haha useing the whole thing would defeat the point of haveing a nice pond to really enjoy.
Dude a good cheap way to heat that thing is this
How close is the pond to the house?
If close you could always get a powerfull pump and run black piping up ur roof and zigzag it then come back down to the pond. My neighboor does this to heat his swimming pool through the winter. It gets to be around 20 at the lowest but usually in the 40s. But it keeps his pool at around 75. Or if that doesnt seem good enough just set up a seperate water heater that just flows in and out throughout the winter. Hell even a fire powered heater. That would be cheap.
How close is the pond to the house?
If close you could always get a powerfull pump and run black piping up ur roof and zigzag it then come back down to the pond. My neighboor does this to heat his swimming pool through the winter. It gets to be around 20 at the lowest but usually in the 40s. But it keeps his pool at around 75. Or if that doesnt seem good enough just set up a seperate water heater that just flows in and out throughout the winter. Hell even a fire powered heater. That would be cheap.
None of the options that you ^^ posted are cheap.
You have to think.. this kid is 14 yrs old. His PARENTS will be the ones having to pay for this. His parents would more than likely not want to have to do any of the options for what is probably "just a fish" for them.
If you want to run the water to your roof, you need a high head pumps, and they aren't cheap to run at all. So that's NOT cheap.
The wood burning heaters that you suggested also cost thousands. NOT cheap.
Hot water heaters have elements.. you would burn it up, and would costs hundreds a month. NOT cheap.
There is NO cheap way what so ever.
The cheapest way would be to just buy a big enough stock tank and bring the fish inside.
No offense OP, but I think maybe having an RTC in that pond period isn't a good idea.. what happens when it gets large, and then you CANT bring it inside?
You have to think.. this kid is 14 yrs old. His PARENTS will be the ones having to pay for this. His parents would more than likely not want to have to do any of the options for what is probably "just a fish" for them.
If you want to run the water to your roof, you need a high head pumps, and they aren't cheap to run at all. So that's NOT cheap.
The wood burning heaters that you suggested also cost thousands. NOT cheap.
Hot water heaters have elements.. you would burn it up, and would costs hundreds a month. NOT cheap.
There is NO cheap way what so ever.
The cheapest way would be to just buy a big enough stock tank and bring the fish inside.
No offense OP, but I think maybe having an RTC in that pond period isn't a good idea.. what happens when it gets large, and then you CANT bring it inside?
ARE YOU SERIOUS?!
Where do you get $40 to run a hot water heater with it running CONSTANTLY?! It running 24 hours for it to keep the water at a specific temp. A house hot water heater is not made to run constantly. And the electric water heaters how a days have double elements. He still needs a pump for the water to get to the pond, and he would have to insulate all the lines going in and out of the house. He's 14.. he CAN'T legally get a job.
From someone who has a pellet stove.. (my father) he went through a ton and a half, which is a skid and a half.. which is $200 a skid.. he used this to heat a small ranch house for only 3 rooms. Pellet stoves are expensive.
The $200 high head pump.. what gallonage is it rated for? It sucks electricity. My pond pump uses 140 watts of electricity, and its not high head rated. You're looking at over 200 watts for your "cheap" pump that is more than likely not even at the correct gallonage per hour for what he needs.
I built a 1500 gallon tank inside my basement, and it still cost less than what it would cost for him to heat his outdoor pond even for just 3 months.
