Hard water!!!! BURRRRRR!!!!

With the temps we are haveing right now, we are gonna start having a problem with hard water, I have not had much success with getting a jig or minner to sink when the water gets hard. I know the ducks sure aint liking all the hard water either. I have broke the hard water to go fishing before, but I have my limits as to how thick the hard water is when I start breaking it to go fishing. Much over 3 inches thick and I stay where the heater/fire is warm and there is a Fresh pot of coffee. Watch fishing shows on the TV and call it good, Clean my guns from deer season, clean my reels, sort my tackle, But not break hard water over 3" thick.

I'm taking this cold spell and having all gaskets replaced on my 25hp plus carb. rebuild.Water pump went out last year and got fairly steaming hot before I noticed it.
I'm planning on fishing black river closer to home alot this year and I want the motor tuned 100% or as close to it as I can.I'm going to pick a area on the river closer to home(8 miles from home) and learn where,when and what as to catch a limit everytime I go.This maybe where I buy the 1198 H.B. and do alot of (just looking).The reason I have no tech stuff in the boat now,I spent to much time in the days watching the finders instead of fishing.I catch more fish now without the tech stuff as to when I had all the tech stuff in the boat.What I didn't like about the finders was just b/c you see fish on them doesn't mean your going to catchem.Spent to much time in throwing everything in the tackle box and every trick in the book with no takers was hair pulling to me.I've learned alot in the last several years without the finders as to read the water surface and what may lay below the surface.I still have two 3D H.B finders but that 1198 keeps screaming buy me buy me buy me,don't know why I don't just give in to its nagging buy me.
Yeah bored huh.....Think I'll buy a case of short red rods with a fuse in the end of them and do without the 1198 lol.

Go to greers the creeks may freeze for a long ways but there is always open water to fish