Winterizing Suggestions for Large Commercial Water Features

Remove Tender Plants

• Although some plants, such as cattails, will overwinter in your pond or fountain just fine, tender plants like tropical water lilies will not survive in cool environments. In order to protect these less-hardy plants, you must remove them from the water. Plants left to die in your water feature will decompose in the water and turn it murky and brackish. You should also remove large debris from the pond, such as vegetation from hardy plants as well as fallen autumn leaves.

Place Hardy Marginal Plants Deeper

• When a deep water pond freezes, it usually only does so on the top layers of the pond. Fish and plants that are placed in the depths of a deep pond will overwinter because the pond never freezes completely through. In order to protect marginal plants like shallow hardy water lilies, you should remove the vegetation and place the potted roots into the depths of the water near the center of the pond. In spring, you can relocate these plants back into the marginal areas. If you live in a very cold climate, where freezing deeper is possible, you might need to remove the fish and plants completely.

Remove Fountain Pumps

• When water freezes, it expands. This is bad news for a fountain pump that is left in water all winter long. Fountain pumps that have frozen water in them may suffer from a cracked housing. Once the housing on a fountain pump freezes, water can reach the pump's machinery. Pump machinery that is exposed to water will quickly rust and deteriorate. You can place submersible pumps into the center of your pond where the water will not freeze. This will protect the pond or water feature and keep the seals in the pump from drying.

Cover Outdoor Fountains

• Just as a pump is vulnerable to cracking from expanding water, so is the surface of a fountain. Fountains can absorb water through their surface and into the layers of stone or cement. When this water freezes in winter, the fountain can chip, crack or break. If water is left to freeze in the basin of a fountain, it can push outward on the sides of the fountain, which will also cause freezing, cracking and breakage.