How To Prevent Pipes from Freezing
When you need to know how to prevent pipes from freezing, your options depend on the situation. Your course of action during a short-term emergency will differ from the solution for a persistent problem. Cold weather in the Delaware Valley and vulnerable pipes should never be ignored. The damage caused by bursting pipes requires both flood cleanup and potentially costly plumbing repairs.
Depending on the situation, you might not need any tools or materials to protect your pipes. Some cases, however, require you to install protection.
Tools Needed
- Space heater
- Hair dryer
- Electric heat tape or cable
- Foam pipe insulation
- Fiberglass insulation
How to Prevent Pipes from Freezing
In emergencies, such as power outages or furnace failure:
- Position space heaters near plumbing.
- Open cabinets beneath sinks to expose pipes to warmer air.
- Turn faucets on to run a slow stream of water.
- The water flow can prevent freezing except in the most extreme temperatures.
- If you discover that water won’t flow, then ice is already present. Warm the pipes with a hair dryer until water flows again.
- In severe freezing situations, shut off the main water supply to the house and open the faucets to drain water.
Pipes exposed in unheated or poorly heated locations present an ongoing problem. You have a couple options for remedying the situation.
- Wrap the vulnerable pipe in foam pipe insulation. This might be sufficient to protect pipes that only experience moderate exposure to cold temperatures.
- Wrap pipes with electric heat tape.
- This product applies steady warmth to the pipe.
- Install insulation throughout the vulnerable area, such as in a crawl space.
Frozen Pipe Repairs
Oliver Heating & Cooling has a dedicated team capable of solving your plumbing problems. If you’re experiencing a perpetual issue with frozen pipes, or if your pipes have burst, don’t hesitate to contact us today for help. We’ll dispatch someone as soon as possible to fix the issue and offer expert advice.
