How to Prevent Frozen Pipes this Winter

Frozen pipes are an inconvenient problem (imagine turning on your faucet and getting no water) and they become an even bigger issue when the frozen pipes lead to other issues like pipe burst. Your plumbing system is so complex and delicate that it’s important to act quickly and proactively. If you do run into a problem and need plumbing in Independence, MO you can rely on our trustworthy team.

A lot of homeowners run into issues with frozen pipes because they don’t realize how easy it is to avoid this issue. Here’s how you can bypass this problem:

Piping in some areas of your home is much more vulnerable than others, namely, the piping that runs through less  insulated  areas in your home like in your attic, garage, basement, or crawlspace. Make sure that you keep these areas tightly closed throughout winter, so you don’t encounter a disastrous plumbing problem.

Make sure you open up the doors underneath your kitchen and bathroom sink. Keeping these closed actually becomes a huge problem because the warm air heating your home throughout winter isn’t touching the piping under here. You’d be surprised how cold this area can get during winter and on a cold day here in Independence the temperatures in these spaces can really drop. Opening the doors helps your pipes tremendously.

We mentioned above the pipes in vulnerable areas (your attic, basement, crawl space, or garage) sometimes need a little extra love. If making sure you close the doors isn’t enough, it’s time to add a little extra insulation. We can fit pipes in these spaces with a rubber or fiberglass sleeves that help decrease the chance of freezing in cold weather. The material sleeve you need is dependent upon the material pipe you have. If you need help determining what type of sleeve is best for you then contact our team.

Flying south for the winter? Plan ahead. Make sure you leave the heat on in your home. It doesn’t have to blast on high while you’re away for vacation, but you should keep it around 50°F so that you can greatly decrease the likelihood of a frozen pipe.

If you have one of those pipes that just insists of freezing no matter how much you baby it, then you might want to try opening the pipe so that the faucet drips just a little. Homeowners often cringe at the suggestion of this because it seems so energy inefficient, but we promise you that if you allow this faucet to drip just a little bit it relieves the pressure in your system and prevents pipe freezing and pipe bursts.