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All homeowners who live in pleasant climates must do their finest to winterize their pipelines. It is something you must do throughout autumn before deep winter season truly starts. Failure to do so can spell disaster like frozen, broken, or burst pipes. If the weather outside is frightful, here are some helpful winterizing hacks to maintain your plumbing system secured also.
Switch on the Faucets
When the temperature declines and also it seems as if the icy temperature will last, it will certainly help to transform on your water both inside and also outdoors. This will keep the water streaming through your plumbing systems. You'll end up throwing away gallons of water this way.
Open Up Closet Doors Hiding Plumbing
When it's cold outside, it would certainly be practical to open cupboard doors that are concealing your pipelines. As an example, they could be somewhere in your cooking area or washroom. This will permit the warm air from your heater to distribute there. Consequently, you protect against these revealed pipelines from freezing. Doing this little trick can maintain your pipes warm as well as limit the possibly hazardous results of freezing temperatures.
Take Some Time to Cover Exposed Pipeline
One simple as well as cool hack to heat up cold pipelines is to cover them with cozy towels. You can cover them first with towels. After protecting them in position, you can put boiling water on the towels. Do it slowly to let the towels absorb the liquid. You can also make use of pre-soaked towels in hot water, just do not forget to use protective handwear covers to secure your hands from the warmth.
Attempt a Hair Clothes Dryer or Heat Weapon
When your pipelines are virtually freezing, your reliable hair dryer or heat weapon is a blessing. If the warm towels do not aid remove any clearing up ice in your pipelines, bowling warm air straight into them may help. You might end up damaging your pipes while attempting to melt the ice.
When Pipes are Frozen, close Off Water
Shut off the primary water valve instantly if you notice that your pipes are entirely icy or nearly nearing that stage. You will usually discover this in your cellar or utility room near the heater or the front wall surface closest to the street. Transform it off as soon as possible to prevent more damage.
Do not neglect to close external water sources, as well, such as your hookup for the garden residence. Doing this will certainly stop added water from filling out your plumbing system. With even more water, more ice will certainly pile up, which will at some point lead to burst pipelines. If you are unclear about the state of your pipes this wintertime, it is best to call an expert plumber for an assessment. Taking this positive technique can conserve you thousands of dollars in repairs.
All property owners who live in warm environments need to do their ideal to winterize their pipes. Failing to do so can spell catastrophe like icy, cracked, or ruptured pipes. If the hot towels do not assist displace any kind of resolving ice in your pipes, bowling warm air straight right into them might help. Turn off the main water valve quickly if you discover that your pipes are completely frozen or nearly nearing that stage. With even more water, even more ice will certainly pile up, which will at some point lead to burst 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.
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