About Frozen Pipes

Winter brings extreme, cold temperatures to most areas of the country. But, it does not have to snow and sleet for your household pipes to freeze. Anytime that the temperatures reach 32 degrees or below, could mean disaster for your home, if your pipes are not properly winterized.

Significance

When water freezes, it expands. Sadly, pipes used for plumbing do not expand, causing frozen pipes to burst and flood your home. The pipes that are in danger of freezing are those that are located in the outside walls of your home as well as any pipes that are not insulated.

Identification

It is possible to identify frozen pipes before they burst. If the faucet is turned on, but little to no water comes out, you know that the pipes are frozen. Commonly, if pipes are exposed, frozen pipes will have visible frost or even ice on the exterior.

Considerations

To thaw out frozen pipes, consider turning up the heat inside of the house. If you wish to defrost exposed pipes, consider shutting off the main water valve, open the faucet and defrost the frozen pipe with a hair dryer.

Prevention/Solution

To prevent pipes from freezing, it is important to winterize your home.
Exposed pipes can be insulated by using foam insulation wrap. The insulation wrap can be found in the plumbing department of any hardware store.
Maintain a drip in all of the faucets in effort to keep the water running. Running water will not freeze.

Warning

Although it may seem like common sense, you should never light a fire or torch under a frozen pipe. Such extreme temperatures can cause the water to boil within the pipe and explode.