Question about pump tubing freezing in winter

8 years ago

I learned a year or 2 ago that if I left my deicer on in my 300 gallon stocktank water garden all winter, it was bad for the frogs, and a lot of them died. So I started leaving the pump on as long as I could and shut the deicer off, and it seemed to help their survival. But it got to single and below digit temps a lot this winter and I had to turn the deicer on. (I need a smaller one too, since I think it heats up the little pond too much....and the frogs wake up, then get zapped by the low temps). But........I got up one day and the water coming out of the tube over my little waterfall was frozen shut. I had to wait until today when the temps got up in the 40's to run it again, because the whole tube above water must have been frozen.

Finally........here's my question: Is it really hard on the pump to have the tube freeze shut with ice? Do they have some sort of auto shut off in this condition, or does it just keep trying and potentially burn out?

Thanks.

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Comments (3)

Hal Warrick
8 years ago
I have a floating heater about 1.5' in front of my skimmer. so far yes I had some freezing in the above ground tubing. Nothing frozen solid and always have water running through the converted sand filter ( all this has in it is poly strapping packed full ) and into the spillway. Sometimes there is a ice cover over the falls but it is still running and flowing. I know the heater only puts out enough heat to keep a hole in the ice and not enough to completely warm the filter and all but it's working. Skimmer is just under the walkway to the left.
catherinet thanked Hal Warrick
PKponder TX Z7B
8 years ago
CatherineT, is it on the output or input side that froze? I've heard that it causes no damage on the output side, but you need to protect the input to avoid pump damage. During our cold steaks, few and not too lengthy, we just unplug the pumps.
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catherinet
Original Author
8 years ago
Hi PK. I'm thinking it was just in the tubing that was outside the water for about 2' to the pump. But if it blocks the flow, wouldn't the back-pressure hurt the pump, since that's its only outlet?