When winter’s icy fingers start to grip our homes, it’s crucial that we’ve taken the necessary steps to protect our outdoor plumbing. If we’ve neglected our external pipes and faucets, the consequences can be, to put it mildly, less than pleasant. We’re talking about frozen pipes that can burst, leading to costly water damage and repairs.
But how exactly do we go about safeguarding our plumbing from the harsh winter elements? Stick around, and we’ll walk you through the essential steps and measures you need to take to ensure your plumbing survives the coldest season. You might be surprised at how simple it can be to prevent a winter plumbing disaster.
Understanding Winter’s Impact on Plumbing
Bracing for the harsh bite of winter, we need to grasp how freezing temperatures can wreak havoc on our outdoor plumbing. When water freezes, it expands. This expansion puts immense pressure on whatever is containing it, including metal or plastic pipes. No matter the strength of the material, expanding water can cause pipes to burst.
Pipes that are most at risk are those exposed to severe cold, like outdoor hose bibs, swimming pool supply lines and water sprinkler lines. Also, pipes running along exterior walls with little or no insulation are highly vulnerable. We often don’t realize the damage until it’s too late, resulting in costly repairs and massive inconveniences.
To prevent such mishaps, we should drain water from swimming pools and water sprinkler supply lines following manufacturer’s or installer’s directions. We must also remove, drain, and store outdoor hoses. Closing inside valves supplying outdoor hose bibs and opening the outside hose bibs to let water drain can be a lifesaver.
Additionally, adding insulation to attics, basements, and crawl spaces will maintain higher temperatures in these areas. We could use products like a ‘pipe sleeve’ or install UL-listed ‘heat tape,’ ‘heat cable,’ or similar materials on exposed water pipes. Newspaper can provide some degree of insulation and protection to exposed pipes – even 1/4′ of newspaper can provide significant protection in areas that usually don’t have frequent or prolonged temperatures below freezing.
Essential Outdoor Plumbing Maintenance Tasks
After understanding the potential damage winter can cause, it’s crucial we tackle some key outdoor plumbing maintenance tasks to further safeguard our homes. At the top of our list is inspecting our outdoor plumbing systems. We must check for leaks, cracks, or any signs of damage. It’s easier to fix these issues now rather than deal with the fallout of a burst pipe in freezing temperatures and struggle to find an emergency plumber during extreme cold weather conditions.
Next, we should drain and disconnect all outdoor hoses. Water that’s left in hoses can freeze, causing the hose to expand and potentially damage the connected faucet or even interior pipes. It’s best to store these hoses indoors, if possible.
Insulation is another critical task. We can use heat tape, pipe insulation, or even a simple outdoor faucet cover to help protect our pipes from the cold. The goal is to reduce the chances of water freezing within the pipes, as this is what causes them to burst.
Maintenance of our sprinkler system is also important. We must drain the system and shut off the water supply to avoid any freeze damage.
Step-by-Step Guide to Protecting Pipes
Let’s dive into a detailed guide on how to protect our pipes from freezing temperatures.
- First, we’ll need to identify any exposed pipes on the exterior of our homes or in unheated areas such as garages or basements. It’s these vulnerable pipes that are most at risk of freezing.
- Once we’ve identified these pipes, we’ll want to insulate them. Pipe insulation can be bought at most hardware stores and is straightforward to install. We’ll simply cut it to size and secure it around the pipe. We can also use heat tape or heated cables for pipes in particularly cold areas. These are also easy to install and will provide extra protection against the cold.
- Next, let’s remove any hoses connected to our outdoor faucets and drain the water from them. We’ll then need to shut off the water supply to these faucets from inside our house. Once the water supply is off, we’ll open the faucets outside to allow any remaining water to drain out. This will prevent the water from freezing inside the pipes and causing them to burst.
Emergency Measures for Frozen Faucets
Despite our best efforts, sometimes faucets can still freeze in extreme cold, but don’t worry, we’ve got a few emergency measures up our sleeve to tackle this.
The first step is to open the faucet slightly; this allows any steam produced by thawing to escape, reducing the chance of the pipe bursting. If it’s an outside faucet, ensure the inside shut-off valve is open too.
Next, we’ll attempt to thaw the faucet. We can use a small handheld hairdryer on a low setting, slowly moving it back and forth along the pipe, starting from the faucet and moving toward the colder area. It’s crucial to avoid high heat or concentrating on one area; we don’t want to cause damage.
What if we can’t access the frozen part of the pipe? We’ll have to increase the heat in the area surrounding the pipe. It can be as simple as opening cabinet doors to allow warm air circulation, or using a space heater if it’s in a colder area like a basement or garage.
Remember, if there’s no water at all when you turn on the faucet, the pipe may have already burst. In this case, shut off the water immediately to prevent flooding and call a plumber.
Lastly, prevention is key. We can insulate pipes, keep the heat on, and let faucets drip to avoid freezing. But if you’re caught off guard, these emergency measures can help mitigate damage and restore your water flow.