When you live in areas that experience freezing temperatures in most periods of the year, it’s vital to undertake preventative measures on your plumbing system. Without these preventive measures and with your pipes get exposed to freezing temperatures, they can burst due to pressure build-up.
With burst pipes during the winter season, you have to find an emergency plumber to remedy the situation. You would need such remedial plumbing until the spring to carry out extensive repair and maintenance of your plumbing system. While having an emergency plumber on your speed dial is essential, you can undertake several steps to keep your finger off the dial.
The pipes in your concern are the supply and not the drain pipes. Due to their larger diameter, the drainpipes aren’t susceptible to freezing. Additionally, they don’t hold water, and thus, water doesn’t stand long enough to start freezing. On the other hand, the supply pipes can hold water for extended periods, and the smaller diameter also means water can quickly freeze.
The below tips can help you get through the winter season with your pipes intact.
Keep The Faucets Dripping Slowly During The Coldest Days
To ensure that this trick works well, identify the furthest faucets from your water source. Additionally, check faucets that are fed by exposed water pipes. Open the taps enough to have a continuous flow of water. The water flow should help you monitor if there’s a change in the pressure. If the pressure drops, it could signify that the water is starting to freeze, and you can take steps to prevent this.
Furthermore, the continuous flow ensures that the water in the pipes isn’t stationary to create freezing conditions. By choosing faucets furthest from the source and ones connected to exposed pipes, you also prevent pressure from building up on the coldest part of the plumbing system. You can open faucets on the bathtub or put containers under the taps to save the water for later use.
Drain All Outdoor Water Pipes
You may have an outdoor shower or gardening water supply line in your backyard. It’s vital to take care of these pipes, and other water lines in uninsulated areas, well before winter. You won’t be using these pipes anyway, so ensure you drain them thoroughly to prevent them from freezing. To drain, close the water supply first, open, and let the faucets flow until empty. Ensure you put the faucets back in the close position.
Insulate Any Exposed Pipes
This tip can be the most crucial step in your burst-pipe prevention process. It’s common to have plumbing running through an attic, a basement, a garage, or beneath a patio floor. The pipes in these areas won’t get the same warmth as inside the house. Therefore, inspect your whole plumbing process and cover any exposed pipes with an insulating material.
Insulating the pipes prevents excessive heat loss and prevents water in the lines from freezing. You can use fiberglass or foam to protect the pipes in these areas, and these are materials you can get at your local hardware stores. Alternatively, you can check with your local plumbing company on the best material suitable for your location if you’re unsure.
Open Interior Doors And Cover Unheated Spaces
You can have pipes inside the house, but they run along the exterior walls. Due to this, they can freeze as they are exposed to the outside cold temperatures. Therefore, you should keep cabinet doors in your kitchen and bathroom. Doing so allows warm air to circulate into these cabinets and keep the pipes beneath warm.
Additionally, keep the doors closed for unheated areas like the attic and the garage. It prevents the cold draft from lowering the temperatures further, thus protecting your pipes. It’s also best to look closely at these unheated areas and check for cracks and gaps. If there are any, seal these gaps with an insulating material, spray foam, or caulk to keep cold air from getting in. For good measure, and where possible, cover both interior and exterior parts of the cracks or gaps.
Don’t Turn The Thermostat Too Low
In most cases, it makes sense to reduce the thermostat temperatures, especially during the night, to save on energy. However, these low temperatures can be unfriendly to your plumbing system. Therefore, maintaining a constant temperature day and night helps keep your plumbing system warm and prevents the pipes from freezing.
If it so happens that you’re going away for a while, you should set the thermostat to temperatures just below normal. It’s best to keep temperatures between 12°C (53°F) and 20°C (68°F). While going away, it’s essential to close the water supply and drain all the pipes.
Conclusion
Preparing well to protect your plumbing from the winter cold can help avoid unscheduled expenses caused by burst pipes. The above tips can keep your water lines from freezing during winter and enable you to schedule occasional spring maintenance.
