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Old 09-10-2012, 03:11 PM
 
Location: North Western NJ
6,591 posts, read 24,785,772 times
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i have hard clay and lots of sand, id love to put in a small "meditation pond" in my side yard but dgging is not an option so ive been thinking of doing a free standing peice, id love to find an old clawfoot tub or stock tank to turn into a pond...
but im worried about freezing in winter.

Given it would be above ground, how deep/wide would it need to be to prvent it freezing solid in winter without ading a heater/de-icer?

if i whent stock tank i was thinking of actually building a cinder block wall around it and back filling both a small gap between the block and the tank and the holes in the ciner block with some kind of insulating material (either sand or even styrafoam/foam insulation) but if i were to just go old tub or tank without the "wall" whats the smallest i could go without having a block of ice through the winter.
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Old 09-10-2012, 10:31 PM
 
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Considering whole ponds and even larger lakes can freeze if the winter is cold enough for enough days I don't think size will make much difference, especially with something above ground. If we get a cold winter and it lasts long enough any small body of water out in the open and above the ground warmth will freeze over. On the other hand if you believe in Global warming (and since you live far enough south) a prolonged cold snap is probably going to be rare in your garden. One way that some bird baths and small ponds are kept ice free are with aeration or bubble systems rather than heating systems. Neat idea but I think it may need some more thinking through... I'm surprised Bulldogdad hasn't responded yet, since he's great with the physical layout and hardscape stuff.
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Old 09-11-2012, 04:34 PM
 
Location: North Western NJ
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yeah last winter was mild but it ws my first winter here in West TN (from CT and before that England) so its taking some getting used to completly different weather patterns, i LOVED last winter and there was only a few weeks where my rabbits water bottles froze on the over nights.
i was thinking of possibly getting a little stock tank "de-icer" but trying to be gentle on the elctric bill lol.
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Old 09-11-2012, 09:07 PM
 
2,063 posts, read 7,737,946 times
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I hear you on worries about the bill, it will be impacted if you have to run something for longer periods!

It was just as unusually mild on this end of the state, too. Previous winters have been a bit more fierce but still not like the one up in CT. Generally in average winters there is a 6 week window where freezing is more common in most of TN, but it is not continuous. Then we have a lot of late frosts and freezes that won't freeze the water (much) but will do damage to plants. I can't wait to see what you come up with!
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Old 09-14-2012, 07:41 PM
 
29,981 posts, read 42,798,928 times
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DIY -

Solar heated and insulated stock tank

Just curious, but why not just drain the stock tank in the winter if it is being used for a landscape accent/meditation? If it is that cold out meditate by staring into a fire in the fireplace.

Last edited by lifelongMOgal; 09-14-2012 at 07:54 PM..
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Old 09-14-2012, 09:16 PM
 
Location: North Western NJ
6,591 posts, read 24,785,772 times
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im hoping to put a couple of comets and pond plants in it, things that wouldnt do well without water all winter lol but dont have enough room for another fish tank/pond plant tank IN the house lol
theyll handle COLD water and even frozen solid as long as theres at least 1 spot that doesnt freeze solid....

Solar however, that i could do...thanks
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