Thousands of families have one or more rooms ruined and their lives disrupted each winter because of water pipes freezing and breaking. According to the Institute for Business and Home Safety, claim payments over the past decade for these types of losses have exceeded $4 billion.
When the outside temperature drops below 20°F, water pipes in homes with little or no insulation are likely to freeze and break. A small intrusion of frigid outside air can easily freeze a pipe located near an outside wall. Just a one-eighth inch crack in a pipe can spew out more than 250 gallons of water a day, destroying floors, furniture, appliances and personal items.
Homeowners can avoid frozen pipes by having adequate insulation where pipes run along outside walls, floors and ceilings. You should disconnect outside garden hoses, wrap exposed pipes with insulating sleeves or tape, and seal foundation cracks that allow cold air to freeze pipes in crawl spaces. You can open cabinet doors under sinks to allow warmer room air to circulate around pipes. Allow a small trickle of water to run from faucets, especially those along outside walls.
If you determine your pipes have frozen, open the faucets and turn the water supply off at the water main. As the pipes thaw, this will reduce the amount of water that leaks from the area of the burst pipe and remove the water supply to the leak.
Never use any type of torch or open flame to thaw a pipe. Better a small flood than a big fire. You can use the warm air of a hair dryer or portable heater to thaw the frozen pipe, but if you are using a combustion type heater be sure that there is adequate ventilation and no risk of fire. Do not use a combustion type heater in a confined space. Make sure that whatever warming device you use is UL approved (visit Underwriters Laboratories online to check their online certifications directory).
Just an ounce of prevention will save you tons of grief. Using these simple steps could prevent a serious claim and disruption to your life.
