As you ready your home for the cold season, ensure that winterizing your pipes is prioritized on your checklist. Freezing temperatures during winter can cause the water within your pipes to solidify, potentially leading to pipe bursts. Not only can this be costly to rectify, but it can also inflict significant harm on your property.
5 Methods to Prevent Frozen Pipes
Although not overly intricate, winterizing your pipes requires some foresight and perhaps a bit of practice. Ideally, this task should be tackled in autumn, prior to the onset of harsh winter conditions. Nonetheless, it’s advisable to revisit these measures if severe cold spells are anticipated. Here are our top five recommendations to safeguard your pipes from freezing:
- Draining Outdoor Faucets and Detaching Hoses
Begin by shutting off the valve controlling the water flow to your outdoor faucet. Proceed outside to disconnect and drain your hose, opening the outdoor faucet to ensure complete drainage. Close the faucet once finished. Return indoors to the shut-off valve and drain any residual water from the pipe into a receptacle. Moreover, if you possess a home irrigation system, engaging a professional to purge the system of water annually is advisable.
- Insulating Pipes
An effective and economical approach to prevent frozen pipes is insulating them. Focus particularly on areas of your home lacking exposure to heat, such as the attic. Opt for foam sleeves, readily available at local hardware stores.
- Maintaining Heat at 65 Degrees
Given that pipes reside within walls where temperatures are colder than the rest of the house, maintaining your home heated to at least 65 degrees, even during absences, is recommended by The Insurance Information Institute. Consider investing in smart devices to monitor home temperatures remotely.
- Allowing Water to Drip
Even a small, steady flow of water can deter ice formation within pipes. When freezing temperatures loom, initiate a trickle of water from all faucets serving exposed pipes. Running a few faucets simultaneously can also alleviate pressure within pipes, reducing the risk of rupture if water freezes.
- Opening Cupboard Doors
Promote warmth around kitchen and bathroom pipes by opening cupboards and vanities. Additionally, leaving interior doors slightly ajar facilitates even circulation of warm air throughout your home.
Steps to Take if Your Pipes Freeze
If your pipes freeze without cracking or bursting, promptly follow these steps to attempt thawing:
Locate your main water supply valve and shut it off. Turn on faucets to release pressure, leaving them running while thawing pipes. Use a portable heater or hair dryer to thaw accessible pipes, avoiding open flames. Inspect for leaks and engage a plumber to assess potential damage. Even if a pipe doesn’t burst, it could have been weakened by ice pressure.
Actions to Follow if Your Pipes Burst
In the event of pipe bursts, promptly notify your insurance company for damage inspection. Meanwhile, remove nearby carpet or furniture susceptible to further harm, document any property damage, and retain receipts for expenses incurred during repairs.
