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Creating Rink on River
I live on a river with very little traffic. I'd like to create a rink out on the ice, but am having an issue with shell ice. I shoveled a fairly small rink (20'x20') thinking it was best to start small. I then flooded using a sump pump in the river. I put about an inch or so of water on the ice the other night (it was about 20F overnight) and it froze with a thin layer of shell ice with big air bubbles under it. I then re-flooded the same area yesterday afternoon (about 30F with full sun) and had the same result.
Thoughts? I've read on here that I should have used hot water instead, but I can't imagine where I'd get that much hot water. I was really hoping I could just flood the rink with river water and it would be good. Guess not.
I'm open to any tips anyone can give. Thanks!
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jim Boisvert on -
I think the main reason you are getting shell ice with air bubbles is the temps. aren't cold enough to spray. Best to spray when the temps are colder, like 10 degrees F or lower. The other problem is the amount of water you are putting down (1 in) Thin layers are better. Spray, wait for it to set up, then spray again, wait for set up, etc. I know that's a pain, since you have to submerge the pump each time and then remove, but you'tt get better ice.
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Permalink Reply by Bayou Josh on -
Yeah, I was kind of thinking the same thing. Now that I've screwed it up, is there a fix? I guess I could go around and break all the shell ice, sweep it off (will be tough, since a broom won't life it above the ice that did freeze) and then start spraying. Could I just spray over the shell ice?
As for the pump, my 1/3 hp pump can't really produce a light spray. It would probably burn out the pump if I put a garden hose with a sprayer on it. I'll probably need a smaller pump. It's not too much work, since I can just leave the pump submerged and I don't have to worry about it freezing. At night, I drag the setup into the cellar and it stays warm enough to keep it from freezing.
BTW - your rink looks awesome. I'm up in Fremont, just about two hours north of you. How do you initially flood your rink? One spray-layer at a time? Or do you flood the whole thing and hope for the best?
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Permalink Reply by Jim Boisvert on
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Bayou Josh,
As for my rink, I use a liner. I poured about 4.5 inches of water into it ( very level throughout) and wait for low temps. The liner goes up and over a 6 in. wide board at the base of the boards, so I allow for more water to be added. I now have 6 in. of ice. With the cold temps predicted for tomorrow night (single digits) that may be a good time to pour. Yeah, I would spray over the shell ice, but one layer at a time. Let me know how it turns out.
Bayou Josh said:Yeah, I was kind of thinking the same thing. Now that I've screwed it up, is there a fix? I guess I could go around and break all the shell ice, sweep it off (will be tough, since a broom won't life it above the ice that did freeze) and then start spraying. Could I just spray over the shell ice?
As for the pump, my 1/3 hp pump can't really produce a light spray. It would probably burn out the pump if I put a garden hose with a sprayer on it. I'll probably need a smaller pump. It's not too much work, since I can just leave the pump submerged and I don't have to worry about it freezing. At night, I drag the setup into the cellar and it stays warm enough to keep it from freezing.
BTW - your rink looks awesome. I'm up in Fremont, just about two hours north of you. How do you initially flood your rink? One spray-layer at a time? Or do you flood the whole thing and hope for the best?
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Permalink Reply by Bayou Josh on
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So, after further review, it turns out that my second layer went on perfectly. This layer was put on Sunday afternoon in about 30-32F temps and full sun. I put about 1-2" of water over the top of my previous layer (mostly shell ice) and it froze perfectly. I'm going to try to resurface it with hot wire and a distribution system to put a great, consistent finish on it.
I guess what I'm confused about is if you fill your rink with 4.5" of water when it's still relatively warm out and wait for the low temps to creep in and freeze it naturally. How is that different than filling my rink with 2" of water when it's 15F out? Your rink probably started freezing those first few nights when it was getting down to 25F, right? I would think it should freeze all the better now that it's colder.
In the end, I have a great rink now with a nice flat surface. However, since I didn't really have a reason for the shell ice in the first place, and don't have a reason to not have it now, I have no way to know that it won't be there next year again. This is my concern dude.
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Permalink Reply by Jim Boisvert on
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There are a lot of variables that are different from rink to rink. Probably the 30-32F temps and full sun melted the shell ice allowing for the perfect ice you got. Not sure of all the conditions for your rink, so advice is given from experience, but may not be the most accurate given your conditions. As far as next year goes, the weather could be totally different, the ice conditions changed.....lots of variables change from year yo year.
Bayou Josh said:So, after further review, it turns out that my second layer went on perfectly. This layer was put on Sunday afternoon in about 30-32F temps and full sun. I put about 1-2" of water over the top of my previous layer (mostly shell ice) and it froze perfectly. I'm going to try to resurface it with hot wire and a distribution system to put a great, consistent finish on it.
I guess what I'm confused about is if you fill your rink with 4.5" of water when it's still relatively warm out and wait for the low temps to creep in and freeze it naturally. How is that different than filling my rink with 2" of water when it's 15F out? Your rink probably started freezing those first few nights when it was getting down to 25F, right? I would think it should freeze all the better now that it's colder.
In the end, I have a great rink now with a nice flat surface. However, since I didn't really have a reason for the shell ice in the first place, and don't have a reason to not have it now, I have no way to know that it won't be there next year again. This is my concern dude.
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Permalink Reply by Daniel robitaille on -
You getting shell ice because the water is running away
clear you are and make snow banks
water the snow bank down so the make a solid wall all around
then fill with water.
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Permalink Reply by Bayou Josh on
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Ah-ha! This makes perfect sense. Thanks so much!
I figured the water was disappearing under the top layer of ice. I just couldn't figure out where it went. There aren't that many imperfections in the ice to cause the void. That would also explain why my second layer froze solid - the snow bank was already frozen, containing the water under the second layer of ice so it could all freeze. Next year, I'll do a better job of setting up my snow-walls ahead of time. Thanks for the advice!
Daniel robitaille said:You getting shell ice because the water is running away
clear you are and make snow banks
water the snow bank down so the make a solid wall all around
then fill with water.
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