Wintertime is almost here, and this will be the very first time that your Koi pond will be exposed to the cold weather. Winter is the downtime for your Koi pond, because during this season, less events will occur compared to the other seasons. To ensure the survival of your fish and Koi pond through the weather, here are important precautions that you need to take for your garden before winter blows its first cool breeze.

First, clean up - Take your time in completely going over your pond (this can take about a weekend). Remove those unwanted bulk material inside and around it as well. Inside the pond, remove all of those materials such as leaves and slits from the bottom of it. If you have flowers or plants that wouldn't survive the cold weather, you should also remove these as well.

Around your outdoor pond, clean up the debris that can be blown to it, because you will not be able to notice the debris until the winter's end (this will then prevent those potentially harmful parasites and bacteria in the future).

Second, stop feeding - Keep in mind that your fish needs to stop feeding during the winter period. Feed them once a day when fall starts and temperatures reach around 55 degrees to 60 degrees. Completely stop the feeding once the temperature hits below the 50-degree mark (even though the temperature will go beyond this mark, you should refrain from feeding your pets).
Most of them take at least 4 days for them to digest food completely when they are in good health and the temperature is above 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

If you will forget this important step, you'd end up killing your fish! When your fish open their mouths at you, do not mistake it for hunger, for it's only a learned reflex instead of a sign of hunger. Don't worry about not feeding, because your fish will feed on something else besides the food that you provide them (especially if your pond has a great amount of natural plants). If you won't feed your fish regularly, they will then feed upon these.

Third, check up - Do a seasonal check up on the equipments that you have, from your filtration system to your array of preventable medications. Remember that most of the ponds lie dormant during the winter, you'd be able to less likely find the stuff that you're going to need. Make sure that your emergency kit (including the bags, water testing kits, medications and nets) is always ready and up to date.

Fourth, prepare for the cold - Make a preparation for the cold weather by investing in the items that you’d be needing during the summer time. It is known that the fish can withstand constant temperatures as low as 39 degrees for short periods of time (which include those that fall a little bit lower than 39 degrees Fahrenheit).

If you're going to purchase a heater, do a research first on the size that you'll be needing to heat your pond the right way during the winter. Otherwise, ice will still be able to materialize, causing danger imposed by the amounts of gas in the water, as it is trapped under the ice. In the event of extreme cases, you can also put inside your pond an emergency tank.

Finally, turn off all of your water sources - Your heater will do its work harder in order to maintain the temperature suitable for your fish to live in the cold weather. If you have those add-ons like streams, waterfalls and fountains, you should turn them off during the winter (as they will circulate water and constanly bring new and cold water to your Koi pond). By switching them off, you'll make your pond's standing water the only thing that your heater will be responsible for.