The easiest solution, but not the best long term solution would be to leave your water running just a little bit, especially at night when it is the coldest. This keeps the water in the pipes moving preventing it from freezing.
You can also get some pipe insulation to put on the pipes, it’s very inexpensive and available at any home improvement store.

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I leave my faucets at a light stream (more than dripping but not all the way on either) I am so sick of this, my landlord says its just the way it is in a trailer…but I have never had this bad of a problem before in my other trailer homes. Is there ANYTHING else I can do? Is it common for them to freeze even when there is a more than steady drip? I already have read about the heat tape, and I’m going to try and buy some….any other suggestions?

The skirting around the trailer should be all tight with no holes or breaks in it. This keeps the cold wind out. Next-Wrap a heat tape right where the water pipe comes up out of the ground to feed your trailer. Wrap the heat tape around this pipe (make sure it does not touch itself. Keep the thermostat out to the open (don’t wrap it).

Next install a layer of heat tape insulation overtop of the heat tape. Wrap this insulation loosely using several layers. Hold it in place with some nylon zip ties. Plug in the heat tape to a working outside outlet. Buy several bales of straw and place these bales around the pipe coming out of the ground, this helps keep the ground from freezing around the top 1′ of soil around your water pipe.

If the heavy carboard underliner of the trailer is all in good shape. *This is the liner that you should see under the trailer. It keeps air from getting into the trailer through the floor, all your plumbing lines and heat ducts are above this liner. Patch any holes or tears with good quality duct tape.

Keep cabinet doors and vanity base doors open under the sinks-this lets warm air closer to water lines. For really cold situations I have even taken out a floor register and cut some small holes in the ductwork from above in the bathroom area and kitchen sink area. This lets a little of the heat from the ductwork go under the trailer between the floor and the cardboard liner.

You lose some valuable heat, but it will keep the plumbing from freezing up. Check where your water heater is. Sometimes on a trailer they are only accessible from the outside by taking off a panel of siding. You may need a heat tape on the cold water side of the water line. If it is inside the trailer and not on an outside wall it is probably ok.

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I live in Florida and it doesn’t freeze here often. But tonight we’re expecting a hard freeze which will last about 10 hours. I’ve wrapped my outdoor water faucets loosely with towels to protect them from the cold. But will this work as well as leaving a drip going? Also, with the freeze not expected to last more than 10 hours, how much protection do I really need to plan for? The TV news stations don’t let up with the whole protect your pipes things, but it’s not like we live in Michigan! What’s the truth?

I would let drip, because if you have only a small leak on spigot you will wet towel and cause the spigot to freeze even quicker.

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I’m in NC. The boiler conked out in a 4-unit apartment building I own. Today is Friday. A new boiler will be installed on Tuesday. The night time temperature is supposed to get down to 14 degrees F. on Sunday, which is very cold for here. Day time temperatures will be a little above freezing.

How can I keep the pipes from freezing? I can’t put a heavy load on the electrical system. What’s best – - leave the water running a little? (which faucets??)? a kerosene space heater? electric pipe wrap? (on which pipes?) something else? I’m prepared to spend some money. (No problem with the tenants; they are getting rent relief.) Desperate in Durham

You’ll probably be fine if you keep all the faucets at a drip. It is highly unlikely that you will have a freeze-up at those temperatures for a short time. We have freeze-ups in the north east when the temperature is in the teens for 3 days straight. I don’t recommend kerosene heaters. they make you light headed after an hour. A small space heater near the meter, and one in each apartment would probably be sufficient, and not an overload on the electrical box. GL…..Rich

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