I live in MO and my water pipes are right under the house. It is freezing down there and my pipes are freezing. I have been defrosting them by dropping a space heater down a hole in the floor but am afraid the pipes are going to burst eventually.

Should I keep a space heater down there? Leave the hot or cold water dripping? To get new pipes put in to prevent this will cost quite a bit and will not be able to be done until Spring. This is past annoying.

The first thing I would do is to go around the outside of the house and make sure there are no drafts coming in from cracks, pipe holes, wire holes, or vents. If you have vents in your foundation close them or block them off with something.

Eliminating drafts will help considerably. secondly, if you use a forced air furnace for heat, you might be able to cut in a vent that will blow heat into the crawl space near where the freezing problem is. I don’t recommend the space heater and am not fond of heat tapes.

Another option is to insulate the walls of your crawl space (if possible to move around in there) with 1 inch thick styrofoam insulation. You may be able to just get some pipe insulation, if you choose this option make sure you completely cover all exposed copper piping. copper pipe transfers temperature very rapidly, so even if you leave a small portion uncovered, it can still freeze if it gets a draft.

Seal the insulation with duct tape. If you’re only having a freezing problem in certain areas, chances are this is the best place to start looking for drafts from the foundation. expanding foam or some type of silicone caulk will fill most cracks or holes.

It may also be easier to do this from the crawl space as it will be easier to see light coming in from the outside. Get a pair of coveralls and something you can push around to lay on and fill them in.

Good luck.

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Defrosting and  Protecting Pipes

Exposure to temperatures below 20 degrees can cause pipes to freeze and break. A few simple steps can help protect pipes from freezing or defrost them when they do.

Duration : 0:2:50

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I looked into the pipewatchman but the website is offline, the number doesn’t work and it got a poo rating on amazon.

Should I just leave my hose on drip?

HELP! Otherwise it is another year of filling coleman camping containers with water and taking them by sled, LOL.

If the line is freezing underground, the only solution would be to dig it up and put the line deeper, below the frost line. Your local extension agent should be able to give you a recommendation as to how deep.

We are just now running the waterline out to the barn, about 200 feet of line. So here’s my pointers for a happy water winter.

1. Dig the trench a foot below the “frost line” for your area.

2. Run TWO lines from your source to the barn. One “live” that you’ll hook up to your main source and to the barn fixtures, and one “dummy” that you will cap on both ends, and lay alongside the live line. Take a plastic loop fastener and attach it to both ends. It will basically just lay there until you may need it some day. Why? Pipe is CHEAP. Digging line is HARD. 10 or more years down the road, if a leak springs up somewhere in between, we dig down at both ends, hook up the new line and voila.

3. Use a “frost free” fixture in the barn, make sure it’s installed correctly. Go pick up a ratty old comforter at the thrift store and a plastic trash can. Wrap and cover the fixture when the temperature drops, or use a heat tape.

4. If you pipe from stall to stall, be sure it’s installed on an angle and leave individual valves open in the cold. (Cut off the water at the main frost free spigot in the barn and let it drain.)

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How to fix a busted, frozen, broken, copper water pipe. Part 1

How to fix a frozen, busted copper water pipe. www.poormansfix.com

Duration : 0:8:16

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Coming to your NY apartment after a long holiday to be greeted by a flooded kitchen, soaked appliances, and waterlogged computers is no fun. Instead of unpacking your suitcases, you call over your local New York plumber for express emergency repair. Freezing pipes is a common plumbing problem during winter. As temperature drops, water running through exposed lines may freeze and take up more space inside pipe. When pipe is allowed to freeze completely, ice will break through the pipe. Split or burst pipes will let melted water escape and flood your home. Save yourself from expensive water related damages by avoiding frozen pipes all together.

Plumbers in NY will always recommend pipe insulation as your first line of defense against freezing pipes. Foam rubber sleeves or fiberglass are great pipe insulators that can keep exposed pipes warm during the cold months of the year. Wrapped around pipes, electrical powered heating stripes will heat the section of the line vulnerable to freezing. Both insulation and heating stripes will minimize chances of frozen pipes.

Without applying insulation to vulnerable pipes, we should not be too surprised when encountering freezing pipes. Ice inside freezing sections along pipeline will obstruct water flow and cause reductions in water pressure. Dropping water pressure is your warning sign indicating that parts of the pipe are frozen. Pick up on this red flag and repair early the pipe to avoid expensive water related damage to your home.

NYC plumbing companies instruct consumers to shut off water supply once detecting freezing pipes. Next, turn on a couple of faucets to let out trapped steam and melting water. Freezing pipes require gentle thawing to melt ice and relieve pipe from extra weight. Applying direct heat on the frozen section may cause more damage than good. Intense and direct heat may turn trapped ice into boiling water that in turn will also split open the pipe due to steam pressure. As a thumb rule, do not let pipes heat up to the extent that they become too hot to touch. Gentle thawing of freezing pipes can be conducted using one of the following methods:

1. “Blow dry” the frozen section of the pipe with a hairdryer2. Direct a space heater towards the frozen section.3. Dip rags in hot water and wrap around the frozen section. 4. Cover frozen section with electrical powered heating stripes.

Pay attention to your plumbing pipes. Catching early freezing pipes can save you time and money otherwise invested in repairing burst pipes and draining water from your home. NYC plumbers recommend the simple way out – just insulate exposed pipes and lines running along external walls, and spare the time consuming hassle of freezing pipes.

Samantha Richardson

New York Plumber

http://www.new-york-plumber.com.

http://www.new-york-plumber.com/service/pipe-fitting.

(888) 317 – 4264
509 E 78th St. 10075 New York

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Help Protect Your Home From Bitter Cold

People, cars and even your home feel the strain of a bitter winter cold snap. So how do you protect your home from freezing pipes?

Steve Burbridge of Anthony Plumbing, Heating and Cooling said it pays to have a heated garage. “There’s plumbing that’s running in garage ceilings or exterior walls. So having a heated garage helps keep the bathroom above from freezing.

(It) certainly warms anything above the garage,” Burbridge told KMBC’s Donna Pitman. “This particular one runs on natural gas, and has a thermostat. So if there’s a power outage, you still have heat and don’t have to worry about your bathroom freezing above the garage.” Homeowners should also make sure that the cold outside air doesn’t get in.

“This is Fiberglass insulation. It resists air flow,” Burbridge said. Burbridge said to make sure the heat from your furnace will reach your pipes. “If (homeowners) really have a situation where they know it’s going to freeze, it’s good to leave the hot water and cold running at night,” Burbridge said.

Duration : 0:1:51

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Has it frozen before? Otherwise check to make sure the well pump breaker is on and that the main valve by the pressure tank is also on.

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General Pipe Cleaners Pipe Freeze Kit

No need to drain water lines, sprinkler systems, or hot water systems before cutting pipe or tubing.

The Cold-Shot keeps pressurized systems operating while you make repairs. It freezes all type of liquids in steel, copper, cast iron, aluminum and plastic pipes ranging from 18″ to 2″ 10 mm – 60 mm using carbon dioxide CO2. Dip-tube type cylinders are available at all welding supply houses. The Cold-Shot is faster and less expensive than “refrigerator-type” units faster and uses less CO2 than “bag-type” units.

In five minutes, youre ready to go to work on copper tubing, just three minutes for cast iron pipe. Kit includes 10 sets of freeze heads for 18″ to 2″ lines 10 mm to 60 mm, two high pressure spiral hoses with injectors, T-distributor, locking nut, hex head screwdriver, rubber gloves, goggles and carrying case.

22.00 L. 18.00 W. 6.00 H.

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I’m a new homeowner and I also drive semi truck. I am gone five days out of the week, so economically it is more efficient for me to leave my heat off and I also turn off my hot water heater when I leave for the week. I live in mid-Michigan, and it’s starting to get pretty cold out now.

Just wondering at what outdoor temperature I should start leaving my heat set at 50F so that my pipes don’t freeze? Also, should I be leaving my hot water heater running during the week in the winter?

Thanks in advance!

I live in Wisconsin, so we have similar weather. I also travel a lot, so I have the same concerns. I installed a “T” in my city water inlet with a valve and compressor fitting. I also set up bypass valves in the hot water heater so I wasn’t pressurizing the hot water tank. I leave the compressor right in the basement, so when I have to leave, I hook up the air and blow out my lines.

I also drain the water heater. (Make sure you shut off the electric before you drain) It takes me about 1/2 hour to empty the water lines. When I leave, I know if the furnace fails, my water lines are safe. I also leave the heat set at 40 degrees. It doesn’t use that much fuel, and it keeps the paint in the house from extreme temperature changes which can cause damage. I do my road trips without worry about freezing pipes and it only takes 5 minutes to turn on the valves and restore water to my house.

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My fiance and I are looking at buying a house. The house we are the most interested in currently has burst pipes that got frozen over the winter. If we bought the house it would be our responsibility to fix them. I was just wondering if anyone has a general idea on how much this would cost us…

That’s going to depend entirely on whether you will hire the job out or do it yourself!

Hiring out? Pretty damn expensive.

Do it yourself…after learning how at Home Depot? Go for it, not so expensive.

When I plumbed my entire house, it cost me about 250 dollars in parts, and a bunch of practice…got it right without a leak!

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