Simple Tips to Prevent Your Home's Pipe's From Freezing This Winter
Winter is a beautiful season, but those who live in climates that have very frigid cold streaks during the winter need to be extra diligent about protecting their plumbing systems when temperatures plummet. One major plumbing concern during very cold weather is burst pipes, which can cause a lot of damage and can be quite expensive to repair. Luckily, being proactive and taking several steps to protect your pipes can prevent them from freezing and subsequently bursting. Use the following tips to protect your home's pipes from freezing this winter during extremely cold weather.
Insulate Your Pipes
Pipes in exterior walls, attics, crawl spaces, and the garage are often exposed to very low temperatures, which puts them at risk for freezing. An easy way to prevent these pipes from freezing is to properly insulate them. While it is possible to buy pipe insulation and do the project yourself, you may want to consider hiring a licensed plumber to apply heat tape to exposed pipes. A plumber will be able to assess the location of your pipes and select the right level of insulation to keep them from freezing during the coldest winter storms.
Keep Your Home at a Stable Temperature
While it can be expensive to heat a home when it's freezing outside, if you know that your area will be experiencing especially cold weather, it is important to keep the temperature in your home stable. Resist the urge to turn down the thermostat at night or when no one is home—ideally, you should keep your home at the same temperature around the clock to help ensure that the pipes in your home do not get too cold.
Open Cabinet Doors
An easy way to prevent pipes from freezing during very cold weather is by opening up the cabinet doors in your bathrooms and kitchen. When the cabinet doors are open, the warm air in your home will flow around the pipes underneath the sink. The flow of warm air can go a long way towards keeping pipes from freezing and bursting.
Let Water Drip from Faucets
While the sound of a dripping faucet may be highly annoying, allowing your faucets to drip during an extreme cold snap is a simple way to keep pipes from freezing and eventually bursting. Releasing the pressure from the pipes and allowing water to continually be moving as it drips out can drastically reduce the risk of the water and pipes freezing.
If your pipes still manage to burst after you have taken these steps, call a plumbing company, such as Cove Plumbing Inc.