Winter is coming, and colder weather means frozen pipes. With frozen pipes comes water damage, and water damage can lead to a pretty big dent in your wallet. But before you put decide to pack up and move somewhere that doesn’t experience snow and freezing temperatures, here are eight ways to keep your pipes from freezing this winter.
How to Prevent Frozen Pipes
- Keep your thermostat above 55 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter months. This includes when you’re leaving town or will be away from home for an extended period of time.
- If you have water lines running through your garage, keep the doors closed. This will maintain warmer internal temperatures and keep the pipes from hitting freezing degrees.
- Wrap up your pipes. Make sure your pipes are properly insulated, especially any pipes near exterior walls or in attics or crawl spaces – anywhere that pipes have exposure to extreme temperatures.
- Detach external hoses and shut off eternal water sources to faucets and sprinkler systems.
- Watch for air leaks around exterior pipes and seal them off before winter hits.
- Get the heat flowing! Pipes are tucked into the walls, behind cabinets and exterior walls – which means heating can be tricky. You want to open cabinet doors to allow heat to get to the pipes. This will allow them to warm up as much as possible.
- Turn on faucets near exterior walls to a small trickle. It might seem like you’re wasting water, but the running water will make it more difficult for water to freeze!
- If your pipes are known for freezing in certain areas of your home, work with a professional and see if these pipes can be moved permanently to prevent bursting in the future.
Remember, even with the best prevention methods, temperatures can plummet and pipes can still freeze. If water damage strikes your home from a burst pipe this winter, first immediately shut off the water, then call in McMahon Services and our specialized water damage team to help you clean up the mess.
Our crews are available 24/7 to dispatch to your Northern Illinois home or business – call us now and we’ll get on the road!