This is Cool Cat, a Manx.
Above is the winter of 1996-97

On March 13, 1996 the pond was clear of ice so I put in my water pump but then it happened, a blizzard
Above is the winter of 1998-99
It was a warmer than usual winter but there were a couple months that the pond had iced over.

This pump causes more waves but doesn't keep as big an area open as the pump in the lower right picture.

I have the pump just under the surface to do some trials on water stratification. I sampled water temperatures at the 4.5 feet depth and at the surface and the temperatures were the same, just above 32 degrees F.

The second pump forces water toward the shallow end. I have the hose just under the surface and even with very little surface agitation this pump keeps the water open over a larger area than the pump above.

I wanted agitation in this area because there is a shallow divider ledge with only a 10 inch water depth. During the winter of 1996 we had an all time record of 133 hours below zero F and the ice was 8 inches thick at this point.

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