Aeration and filtration of the pond is largely happening through pond equipment that uses electricity. Equipment keeps the ecosystem stable, like pumps, filters, and aerators. Recently there were power outages here on the Front Range in Colorado when there were crazy high winds. In order to prevent fires, Boulder turned off power in some areas. We received several calls from pond owners about the well-being of their fish during the power outage.
The good news is that in most cases, your pond will be fine if the electricity goes off for a couple of days. However, to ensure the health and safety of your aquatic life, it’s important to understand how you can prepare your pond or what to do when it happens.
Understand the Impact of a Power Outage to Your Pond
During a power outage, the most immediate concern is the loss of aeration and filtration. The water’s oxygen levels can quickly deplete without a functioning aeration system, especially there are a lot of fish or if there is really hot weather. Toxins can build up in water as well, but I would not worry about that unless the power was out for a week or more. In April when this happened, it wasn’t hot at all so we weren’t too worried about it.
Pond Preparations
If the power goes out –
Reduce Fish Feeding: Don’t feed them that day. Believe it or not, these eating machines will live through it, even for a couple of days! Skipping on the feeding will lower the risk of ammonia spike while the power is out. (Lowering the amount of waste they produce for a short time.)
Shade the Pond: If the power outage were to occur during really hot weather, I would provide shade for the pond to prevent excessive temperature increases. Hotter water holds less dissolved oxygen which, can stress the fish when the power is out. If you have lots of lilies, they may already have plenty of shade. If not, move a patio umbrella over to give as much shade as you can.
Have 2 Sources of Oxygen. Be prepared for winter outages by plugging the pump in to one outlet and aerators to a completely different outlet (not on the same circuit). That way there are 2 sources of oxygen. If one goes out, they still have the other one. A floating heater is great to make sure there is a place for oxygen exchange to occur. It’s a good idea to plug this in a different plug than the pump. Of course, if the electricity goes out completely this won’t help, but we see one circuit going out more often than all the electricity.
Leave everything plugged in. No need to unplug anything. When the electricity comes back on everything should start up.
Don’t over populate the pond. Over population of fish is never a good idea and if the power goes out it will exacerbate the problem. Use our Gallons Calculator to find the gallons of your pond and how many fish you can safely have in it. Essentially for every 10 inches of fish there needs to be 100 gallons for them. Remember that when you add a 4 inch fish, he is going to grow. Plus, when you have a healthy pond, they may make new fish all on their own!
The waterfall won’t run and the lights will be off when the electricity goes out. But the fish should be ok.
Could the Pond Overflow if the Power Goes Out?
That depends….
When a pond is built there should be a check valve on the Biofall so that the water does not drain from it back into the skimmer. The water in the stream should be able to drain down to the pond without it overflowing. Sometimes a pond is built too small in relation to the amount of water the stream holds. If that is the case, when the pump is turned off, either for maintenance or from a power outage, the water returning to the pond may over flow.
Over flowing water could get down under the liner causing bubbles of water in the pond liner. In extreme cases, too much water can cause a part of the liner to fold down from the pressure and a curious fish may find himself on the outside of the pond. (not good, no one wants to find a dead fish in the grass).
Normally, overflowing is not an issue.
Hopefully a Power Outage is Short Term
While a short-term power outage is generally manageable, being prepared can make a significant difference in maintaining a healthy pond environment for your fish. Planning ahead to ensure that your fish stay safe and healthy, even without electricity.