If You Want to Avoid Frozen Pipes This Winter, Follow These 6 Tips
winter is well underway, especially if you live in polar vortex. Temperatures across the central United States and mid-Atlantic are expected to drop below freezing over the next few days and could even hit record lows. As you prepare for the cold, remember these tips to avoid frozen pipes and subsequent costly repairs.
Pipe Freeze Fees Average $421 Repair, but if the damage is severe, the price can easily go up by hundreds of dollars. That’s before you consider any additional costs associated with home water damage.
By incorporating these expert tips into your winter home maintenance routine, especially during the deep freeze, you can ensure you and your family stay comfortable and cozy all season long.
Looking for more home tips that will keep you warm and your wallet fat? Learn how to save money About hot water costs, Stay warm with a ceiling fan and Set your thermostat for comfort and savings.
Cover exposed pipes
When water pipes are exposed, they are more likely to freeze and burst, especially if they are located on an exterior wall or in an unheated space like a basement or attic. To prevent this from happening, it’s a good idea to protect your pipes with insulation.
Covering exposed pipes is one of the cheapest and easiest ways to prevent pipe bursts. Your local hardware store will have several different materials available for you to use Insulate your pipesincluding foam and fiberglass insulation. You can even use newspaper If you live somewhere that occasionally experiences freezing temperatures, cover exposed pipes.
Isolate unheated areas
When pipes pass through an unheated basement, attic, garage, or crawl space, the pipes don’t pick up as much heat as they do in a heated bedroom or living room. By insulating unheated areas of your home, your pipes will stay warm and be less likely to burst. Additionally, a well-insulated home can contain heat more efficiently, which can Save you money on winter heating bills.
If you’re the DIY type, you should be able to Add your own insulation. Otherwise, you can hire a professional to do it for you. Either way, it’s a cost-effective and energy-efficient way to protect your pipes and keep your home at a comfortable temperature.
Keep the faucets running on cold days
You might be surprised to find that something as simple as turning on a faucet can help prevent your pipes from freezing. But actually, it’s one of the most effective things you can do. You don’t need to run the faucet at full speed, but make sure there’s at least a slow trickle.
For best results, select faucet That’s the furthest place from your water source. Doing this will force the water through a large portion of the pipe system, keeping it active and less likely to freeze. Likewise, if you have any faucets served by exposed pipes, it’s a good idea to leave those dripping as well.
Open bathroom and kitchen cabinet doors
Another small (but useful) strategy to prevent burst pipes is to open the cabinet doors under kitchen and bathroom sinks. By doing this, hot air from your home will begin to circulate beneath the cabinets and heat the ducts.
If the cabinet doors are on the exterior wall of your home, it’s especially important to open them. As you might expect, pipes in these areas are more likely to freeze because they are closer to the cold outdoors.
Don’t adjust the thermostat
You may be familiar with the Department of Energy’s recommendations Adjust the thermostat in winter to save energy, but this guidance does not apply during cold snaps.
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Instead, you should keep your thermostat Maintain a constant temperature day and night. Doing this will help your pipes stay warm, reducing the chance of freezing and bursting. Plus, maintaining a stable temperature will reduce your stress furnacewhich is important during periods of extreme cold.
Seal leaks and draft areas
One final tip to prevent burst pipes this winter is to patch vent areas in your home. When there are gaps or leaks between the inside and outside of a home, cold air can get in, lowering the temperature around the pipes and causing them to burst.
Good news: Closing these holes is easy. Start by taking a quick walk around your house and look for places where air may be seeping in, including window and door frames, electrical wiring, and dryer vents. Once you’ve identified the problem area, seal it with insulation or caulk.
bottom line
Even if home maintenance isn’t your strong suit, you should be able to complete all of these repairs in a weekend. It may seem inconvenient, but making these small upgrades is a small commitment that can prevent serious problems and expensive repairs in the future.
