The Keys to Preventing Winter Pipe Bursts

As winter arrives, the temperatures are dropping more and more. Is your plumbing prepared? When the weather gets below freezing, the water flowing through your home turns to ice, expands, and ultimately a pipe bursts. How can you prevent this? There are a few steps you can take.

Insulate your pipes

You can buy long strips of foam pipe insulation at the hardware store. Cut them into lengths to fit each of your exposed indoor pipes and put them on. This won't prevent the water in them from freezing, but it will slow the flow of heat, keeping them warmer longer.

Heat your pipes

If your pipes are in a dry, enclosed space, then wrap them up in heater tape. You can plug it in, and it will generate enough heat to keep your pipes warm, so the water doesn't freeze. Failing that, you can also use a heat lamp to warm the pipes and keep them from icing over.

Open any cabinet doors

For pipes that are in a cabinet under the sink, open the doors up and let the heat in. You'll likely be running your furnace, so it will be warmer inside than outside.

Run the water

If your house has lost power, then plug-in heat tape and warming your pipes using the furnace will be ineffective. However, you can still keep your pipes from freezing. Turn on a slow drip of water from the hot side of each faucet, then a faster one from the cold side. By keeping the water flowing, it will prevent freezing. Even a very small drip should do the trick. It will drive your water bill up a bit, sure, but it's still cheaper than fixing the plumbing when a pipe bursts.

For outdoor pipes, drain the water

Shut off the valves to all your outdoor spigots to keep water from flowing through them. Then, drain all the water from the spigots.

To learn more about what to do when a pipe bursts, contact us at Air Assurance today. We've served Broken Arrow's plumbing and HVAC needs for over 30 years.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about preventing pipe bursts and other HVAC topics, call us at 918-217-8273. Credit/Copyright Attribution: “MikeBird/Pixabay”

Take these Precautions to Avoid Frozen Pipes

Cold weather months in the Broken Arrow area pose a serious risk of frozen pipes. With just a few extra precautions, though, you can protect your pipes and prevent damage to your home.

Why Frozen Pipes are a Problem

Any time the outdoor temperature falls below freezing, the water in your pipes is at risk for freezing, too. When water freezes, it expands. Pressure from expanding ice inside the pipes can cause frozen pipes to crack or even burst. When the damaged pipes finally thaw, they'll leak water until you turn off the water supply. If you're asleep or away from home when the pipes freeze and leak, you could end up with extensive flooding and water damage.

How to Protect Your Pipes

Keep your thermostat set no lower than 60 degrees, even when you're not home. Insulate pipes in unconditioned spaces, such as the basement, with foam pipe insulation or fiberglass batts.

To keep cold drafts off the pipes, seal air leaks in these spaces with caulk and weatherstripping as appropriate. Insulate your basement rim joists and your crawl space walls with rigid foam insulation. You'll protect your pipes, keep your floors warmer, and improve your home's energy efficiency.

Disconnect your garden hoses and put them in storage for the winter. If your outdoor faucets aren't frost proof, shut off the water supply to them and open the faucets to drain the remaining water.

When the temperatures fall below freezing, open the doors to your sink cabinets to let warm air reach the pipes. Open your taps to let a thin stream of water flow. Flowing water is less likely to freeze.

Learn the location of the shutoff valve for your home's water supply. If your pipes do freeze and crack, shutting off the water will prevent leaks until the pipe can be repaired. For pipes that have frozen solid, contact a plumber. Incorrectly thawing frozen pipes can damage them.

For more pro tips on preventing winter damage to your home, contact us at Air Assurance in the Broken Arrow area.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). Credit/Copyright Attribution: “Fulcanelli/Shutterstock”

Find and Repair Hidden Plumbing Leaks in Your Tulsa Home

Frozen pipes are a huge cause of hidden plumbing leaks and flooding in your home. As soon as water freezes, it expands and forces itself out of the weakest part of any plumbing system, causing it to burst. During freezing winter months, it's best to leave your tap running, especially if you plan to go on vacation. This steady flow can help prevent any freezing.

Although proper insulation is the more efficient and wiser long term-solution, it's a big relief to have some frost-free hose bibs installed in case of emergency flooding. Sometimes a faulty gasket or a loose connection to the wall may be the only cause of a leak. In this case, a simple replacement or repair, either by hand or with a wrench, will be required.

Leaks may also be cause by old mechanical parts or washers and o-rings. Don't overlook proper grout and sealant for your fixtures, as these aren't just needed for cosmetic reasons.

For a thorough run-down on leak prevention check, out this checklist. It covers much of what's needed to prevent and repair leaks, especially during the fall or winter when plumbing problems can be especially tricky due to cold weather.Industry leaders and renowned HVAC and plumbing firm, Air Assurance in Broken Arrow, can install a system that detects leaks in your home before they become a problem. Water alarms are a relatively simple technology, although they're all too commonly neglected by homeowners.

Essentially, these alarms feature a simple circuit that breaks when the slightest bit of moisture makes contact with it, causing it to sound off. Contact Air Assurance to give you the whole run-down on leaky plumbing solutions in the Broken Arrow area -- you'll be glad you did!

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). Credit/Copyright Attribution: “3Dalia/Shutterstock”