Book With Us Today!

How do you really feel on the subject of How to stop pipes from freezing during the winter?

All house owners who live in pleasant environments have to do their ideal to winterize their pipes. Failure to do so can spell calamity like frozen, fractured, or burst pipelines.

Switch on the Faucets

When the temperature drops and also it appears as if the cold temperature level will last, it will aid to transform on your water both inside your home and outdoors. This will certainly maintain the water streaming via your plumbing systems. You'll end up squandering gallons of water this method.

Open Up Cupboard Doors Hiding Plumbing

When it's chilly outside, it would be valuable to open cupboard doors that are concealing your pipelines. Doing this little method can maintain your pipelines cozy and also restrict the possibly hazardous results of freezing temperatures.

Take Some Time to Wrap Exposed Pipeline

One great as well as simple hack to heat up cold pipelines is to wrap them with cozy towels. You can cover them initially with towels. After safeguarding them in place, you can put boiling water on the towels. Do it gradually to let the towels soak up the liquid. You can also use pre-soaked towels in hot water, simply do not forget to put on protective gloves to secure your hands from the warm.

Try a Hair Clothes Dryer or Warm Weapon

When your pipes are practically freezing, your trusty hair clothes dryer or warmth weapon is a godsend. If the warm towels do not assist dislodge any kind of resolving ice in your pipes, bowling warm air directly right into them may assist. You may finish up damaging your pipes while attempting to melt the ice.

Shut down Water When Pipes are Frozen

If you discover that your pipes are completely icy or nearly nearing that stage, transform off the primary water valve quickly. You will generally discover this in your cellar or laundry room near the heater or the front wall closest to the street. Transform it off immediately to stop more damages.
With even more water, even more ice will stack up, which will at some point lead to rupture pipelines. If you are uncertain regarding the state of your pipes this wintertime, it is best to call an expert plumber for an evaluation.
All house owners who live in pleasant climates need to do their finest to winterize their pipelines. Failing to do so can mean catastrophe like frozen, split, or burst pipelines. If the hot towels do not assist displace any working out ice in your pipelines, bowling hot air straight into them may assist. Transform off the main water shutoff promptly if you see that your pipelines are totally icy or nearly nearing that phase. With even more water, even more ice will certainly load up, which will ultimately lead to rupture pipelines.

Planning Ahead for Winter Plumbing!

Given how the weather has been recently here in Kansas City, it may not seem like it, but the truth is winter is quickly approaching. As we near the end of September, it is never a bad idea to start considering which areas of your home could use some preventative maintenance heading into the colder months, as well as what you should remember to do once the colder temps settle in. And considering your plumbing system can certainly be impacted by changing weather conditions, guess what we’ll be talking about today?

For those that are visiting our blog for the very first time, welcome to Stine-Nichols Plumbing. Here on the blog, we post weekly about various aspects of the plumbing world. Whether that be DIY tips, brand highlights or anything else, they’re all designed to make homeowners more knowledgeable about their plumbing systems. Believe it or not, even just some general knowledge about one’s plumbing can go a long way in preventing unneeded repairs and keeping everything running smoothly. As referenced in the previous paragraph, this week’s blog will walk through a few of the steps you can do to your own plumbing system to ensure you’re ready to go for the upcoming winter weather and tips for keeping it all in working order as the winter carries on. Let’s hop right in!

Disconnect Hoses

You’ve likely heard this one on multiple occasions, but it is certainly something worth mentioning. Make sure to disconnect any and all outdoor hoses and then turn off those outdoor faucets at the shut-off. The logic behind this is probably something you would have learned in a grade school science class. When water freezes, it expands. Thus, due to this, it’s going to occupy more space. And if there’s no space to occupy, trouble ensues. It’s as simple as that!

Long story short, if you have room to store them indoors, do so. If not, just be sure to completely drain them and then store them in a dry area, such as the garage or a shed. Failure to disconnect the hoses can easily result in frozen/bursting pipes and plumbing headaches for you, especially if there is still water sitting in the hose! Do yourself a favor and disconnect your hoses once you know you won’t be using them anymore for that season. It’s a quick-and-easy step that’s always worth the time.

Headed Out of Town?

Our next point will likely get more and more relevant as we get into the holiday season. Do you remember the extreme arctic blast that hit the Kansas City area in February of 2021? Sub-zero temps, frigid wind chills, it was definitely not the funnest of times for KC residents. Nonetheless, here at Stine-Nichols Plumbing, it’s safe to say our technicians were quite busy dealing with frozen/bursting pipes. What I’m hinting at here is that you never know when we’ll experience extremely cold temperatures. So if you’re going to be out of town for a little bit, it’s never a bad idea to turn off your water at the main shut-off valve. While this won’t prevent every possible plumbing issue, it will at least limit the damage if something bad were to occur. Especially if you don’t have a family member or friend that’ll be checking on your home while you’re away, make sure to keep this tip in mind!

By the way, it may sound like a no-brainer to most, but if you are headed out of town, make sure to also keep the heat on inside while away. You will have some added energy costs from heating a home while nobody’s there, but if it prevents you from dealing with a plumbing emergency, it’s well worth it!

Leave Cabinet Doors Open

As you may start to notice, the primary winter plumbing problem that you need to be mindful of involves pipes freezing. Whether it be indoors or outdoors, they can freeze for a few different reasons, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of various tactics you can implement to improve your odds of keeping everything in working order. Yet another one of these that you’ve likely heard before is leaving the cabinet doors under your bathroom or kitchen sink open. Will this provide complete protection? Not necessarily. However, this is an easy way to make sure some of the heat in your home is reaching those pipes that aren’t insulated under your sinks.

https://www.stinenichols.com/kansas-city/planning-ahead-for-winter-plumbing/

As a passionate reader on Prevent Freezing and Bursting Pipes, I assumed sharing that excerpt was really helpful. Be sure to set aside a second to share this write-up if you enjoyed it. I treasure reading our article about Prevent Freezing and Bursting Pipes.

Call Today