Homeowners should take precautions to help protect their property from damage. Weatherproofing your home against the cold will help protect your indoor plumbing against the threat of breaks.
Franklin Water Management encourages its customers to take the following precautions to reduce the risk of freezing pipes that can burst.
§ Know what areas of your home, such as basements, crawl spaces, unheated rooms and outside walls, are most vulnerable to freezing.
§ Caulk around door frames and windows and around pipes where they enter the house to reduce incoming cold.
§ Eliminate sources of cold air near water lines by repairing broken windows, insulating walls, closing off crawl spaces and eliminating drafts near doors. Close all air vents located in the foundation wall.
§ Protect your pipes. Wrap exposed pipes with insulation or use electrical heat tracing wire; newspaper or fabric may also work. Remove, drain and store hoses used outdoors.
§ Open cabinet doors to expose pipes to warmer room temperatures to help keep them from freezing.
§ If you have an attached garage, keep its doors shut. Occasionally, plumbing is routed through this unheated space, leaving it vulnerable.
§ Know where your homes primary water shut-off valve is located. If a pipe freezes or bursts, shut the water off immediately.
§ Drain in-ground sprinkler systems: Check the manufacturer’s instructions for the best way to do this.
§ Insulate backflow deviceswrap exposed pipes and device with insulation outdoor backflow devices should have a “hot box” and use electrical heat tracing wire to prevent freezing
When temperatures fall below zero:
If you have pipes that are vulnerable to freezing, allow a small trickle of water to run overnight to keep pipes from freezing. The cost of the extra water is low compared to the cost to repair a broken pipe.
