How to Keep Your Pipes From Freezing This Winter: 5 Tips

Nothing feels better after a long and sweltering summer than when the weather starts to turn cool in October and November. From pumpkin spice lattes and picking out kids’ Halloween costumes to cozying up around a fire, autumn’s charm seems to never get old. Of course, autumn is more than just football and the return of sweater weather: It’s also the season to spend a little extra time ensuring that when winter weather arrives, water pipes don’t freeze.

Here are five tips every homeowner, building manager, landlord and renter can easily follow to avoid the headache and hassle of burst or frozen pipes this winter.

1. Disconnect and Store Outside Garden Hoses

One quick and easy way to prepare for winter’s cold is to disconnect all your outside garden hoses. Drain them of any remaining water, then wrap them for indoor storage. Not only will this protect your pipes, but giving your garden hoses a break from the sun’s UV rays and the rest of the elements will add to their longevity.

2. Drain and Cover Hose Bibbs

A hose bibb is the outdoor faucet that connects to a building’s water supply. To prepare those faucets for winter, open each hose bibb and drain out any remaining water. You can even use compressed air to ensure you got it all. Once all the water from the bibb is gone, cover each one with an insulated, outdoor faucet cover. If it’s an option, turn off the water supply to any outdoor faucets as well.

3. Insulate Pipes

Just wrapping and insulating pipes in a crawl space or an uninsulated wall can help a lot in keeping the water flowing throughout your home. Foam pipe insulation sleeves are an affordable and easy to find option at almost any home improvement or hardware store.

4. Make a Pipe Safety Plan for Any Travel

Winter’s cold brings with it a lot of holidays, which makes traveling away from home common. To ensure that your pipes stay safe and unfrozen while you’re away, always set your home’s internal thermostat to at least 55 degrees Fahrenheit. Open cabinets under sinks, and if you have some pipes that have given you trouble in the past, set the closest faucet to a slow but consistent drip.

5. Locate Your Main Shutoff Valve

Sometimes, even with preparation, a freeze moves in so quickly that pipes freeze or burst. When this occurs, the last thing you want to be doing is trying to locate your water’s main shutoff valve. Find it — and learn how to shut it off — well before the first frost even arrives. Common places to look for your home’s water shutoff valve include:

In the basement or crawl space
Near the water heater
Along an exterior wall
At the edge of the yard

What to Do if a Pipe Bursts

If a pipe bursts, you’ll want to immediately turn off the home’s water supply to prevent further damage. If you can’t find it, or turning it off doesn’t completely stop the flow of water, contact the ACSA. We can turn off the water meter to prevent further damage. Once there is no more danger of water damage, contact a plumber and get the burst pipe repaired.

Follow these five tips and you’ll almost certainly enjoy winters free of burst and frozen pipes. For more home protection and maintenance tips, check out our blog.