How Do I know if My Pipes Are Freezing?

A Winter Advisory for Home Owners in Germantown & Montgomery County.

There’s an old saying about bad things even happening to good people.

When it comes to preventing frozen water pipes here in Germantown and Montgomery County, it has nothing to do with good or bad.  The operative words here are “careful” and “watchful.”

So let’s say you’re both of those and that, as testimony on your behalf, you’ve insulated your unheated water pipes, like those in your garage or crawl spaces.  Or have you? As in, are they ALL insulated?  Because it only takes one that got missed to freeze up and cause you all sorts of potential problems.

Okay, so you stopped reading this blog long enough to check and, yep, they’re all neatly wrapped in foam insulation.  Way to go!  Now you can just coast through winter without ever giving your pipes a second thought?  Right?

Not quite.

Because to earn your “careful” and “watchful” merit badges, there’s more to be done each day or night the outdoor temperatures dip below freezing.

Monitor Your Water Pipes

• Check each faucet in your home for ample water pressure first thing in the morning and last thing at night

• If the weather promises to be brutally cold, leave one or more faucets running ever so slightly overnight on lukewarm

• Check to see if cold air is getting inside anywhere you have unheated or un-insulated pipes.

The Darn Thing Froze Anyway

• If you can’t get water from a faucet, locate the pipe and then use a hair dryer to thaw it, but not near standing water.

• You can also heat up a towel with hot water and wrap the frozen area of the pipe.

• If the faucet itself freezes, heat up some water on the stove and slowly pour it over the faucet until the water starts flowing again.

• If you’re not sure where the frozen spot is inside a pipe, starting heating or thawing it from the faucet on out, leaving the faucet on so, while you’re at it, the melted water won’t back up.

And if the Pipe Has Gone and Burst?

Once you’ve taken a deep cleansing breath or two (in case you’ve lost or plan on losing your cool), proceed as follows:

• Shut off your main water valve.

• If it’s a hot water pipe that’s burst, turn off the valve on top of your water heater to the closed position.

And then?  Call Your 1 Plumber to make everything right again, including your frazzled nerves.

Chances are, however, you’ll never have to make that call if you take the time to insulate – or have us do it for you – all water pipes located in unheated areas of your home or garage.  Because preventative medicine is the best medicine of all.