Protect Your Plumbing From Freezing Temperatures

Number one is to locate all of your shut-off valves in the home. Mark those shut-off valves to what they serve. For example, possible labels may include main water, shut off valve, outdoor water, and faucet.

Shut off any external outside faucets and drain any excess water.

Receiving a home inspection from our company would be a good option to see if we can determine any vulnerabilities with pipes being exposed to freezing temperatures, such as in the garage or basement area.

Leaving a few faucets, dripping, during cold nights is definitely helpful. Movement of the water can eliminate static pressure, which is a major cause for frozen and burst pipes. When pipes are static for long periods of time, it is best to run water to create some movement and energy moving through the pipes.

If you are going to be traveling during cold times, it is best to turn off the entire home and drain any excess water through a faucet and make sure you turn that faucet back off once the water has drained out.

If you were going to be traveling or leaving for a long period of time during a cold snap, speak with your neighbors. Make sure you guys know where the water meter is in the front yard and exercise it properly in case of an emergency. Have whatever tool or pliers are necessary on-hand in case you need them to successfully turn off the water meter. Practice this a few times not only with your home but also with your neighbors. Believe it or not, a lot of disasters over this recent cold snap were eliminated by a neighbor, running over and closing the other neighbor’s water, especially when the people were traveling. We’ve gotten many calls from neighbors saying hey, my neighbor’s water has just burst, and they entrusted me to contact you to get this repaired. I was able to mitigate the risk and damage by turning off their water.