Common Winter Plumbing Issues to Avoid

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Published: Tuesday, 23 January 2018 11:02

Winter can bring cold temperatures, warm fires in the hearth, and a nightmare of plumbing issues. The frigid temperatures of winter can quickly show you any weaknesses that may have developed in your water lines, sewer lines, or faucets.

Many people dread winter because after the big freeze happens the thawing occurs, and they find themselves with enormous repair bills for broken water pipes, broken toilets, floors that were damaged by water, water heaters that must be replaced, well pumps that need to be replaced, and more.

There are some things you can do to prevent some of these tragedies from occurring. 

Well Protection

If you live in a rural area and have your own water well then you need to have a shelter built over your pump. The cover will help prevent problems when the temperatures are not drastically cold, but when the temperatures plummet and stay that way for longer than six hours you need to have a heat lamp set up under your cover, so it can keep the internal parts of your pump from freezing.

 

Protect those Pipes

One thing that all homeowners and renters can do is make sure they protect any exposed pipes before the arctic air moves in. You can insulate pipes with a commercial pipe wrap insulation that does not cost very much. The insulation is designed to slip over the pipe then you take some tape or a zip tie and hold the insulation material in place. 

If you cannot find pipe wrap you can make your own by wrapping newspaper that is several layers thick around the pipes. The paper will not be as good as the pipe insulation and you should replace the paper as soon as you can get some pipe insulation.

 

Protect Your Indoor Plumbing

If you have a toilet that is in an area that is not heated, like in your basement, or in a portion of the house you keep shut off during the winter, then you need to heat the room that toilet is in. The lines going to the toilet can freeze and cause the toilet to be broken.

 
Faucets are Vulnerable

Faucet can freeze so in the winter put a faucet protector over any outside faucets. If your faucet is already leaking, then you need to repair the leak before the winter freeze happens. The freezing temperatures can freeze the leaking water and when that water expands it can break the fixture. 

 

Water Heater Protection

Make sure that your water heater is under a cover. You also can buy a blanket wrap to put on your water heater. The blanket wrap will protect the heater so the water going into the heater does not freeze and it will help the heater maintain the hot water inside it.

The heater will not have to work as hard, so this will save you money on your electric bills. If for any reason you shut the water off to your house, make sure you shut off your water heater. If the water heater gets drained and there is no water coming in to be heated, then it can burn the heating elements up in your heater.

You can also leave your faucets inside your house dripping slightly because it is harder for moving water to freeze.

We hope you found this information insightful for you in this cold season, if you have any further questions please do feel free to give us a ring on 01908 310651.