Got Frozen Water Pipes?
By ShepherdSpy
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
Omagh, Northern Ireland
January 9, 2010 5:56pm CST
My house shares a common wall with the house next door,which has been pretty much vacant since the Elderly couple who owned it passed away last Year..their Family keep an eye on it while they're trying to sell,but nobody's in there all the time,the result being a burst water pipe recently during this current freeze..Today,I was in My Bathroom,and suddenly realised the toilet cistern wasn't refilling..Panic! Even before the accident next door,I'd been careful to always keep a low level of heat on since this cold spell started when I wouldn't be home,at work,or whatever,allowing warm air up through a gap in the attic access panel..seems that wasn't enough..there was a thin layer of ice on what would be the surface of the attic tank's water level,which was holding the ballcock valve up,(and closed)..I broke the ice,and brought a fan heater up and positioned it to warm the valve and the supply pipe,and poured hot water on the valve itself..thankfully,after a minute or so,the water flow came back,and the tank refilled! I've now got a small table lamp on up there to keep the chill off the tank,and thankfully have noticed no leaks,ceilings falling down,or other signs of water related disaster..Have You been careful with your Plumbing in this weather,or Lucky,Like Me?!
1 person likes this
7 responses
@frankiecesca (2489)
•
10 Jan 10
Our pipe connected to our washing machine did freeze but, thankfully it is only a short one so we were able to pour boiling water down and thn salt to keep it from freezing again! Since then we too have always kept a heat of some kind on to stop us from getting a freeze!
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
12 Jan 10
Better safe than sorry...my boiler's acting up and won't stay on continuously,and having an open fire as a backup, the Chimney sweep never got back to Me from having called him before Christmas to clean it,despite a reminder to his wife..now the other Guy I've called can't be here before thursday...
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
31 Jan 10
Am I ever glad to have an open fire I can use in this house while this cold weather is here! It'll keep the living room toasty,as well as heating radiators and the hot water...a bit more input from me being needed,in comparison with the simple setting of the timer on the central heating,but still..it works!
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
26 Feb 10
That's the boiler sorted out for another while! (Thankfully!)
@enola1692 (3323)
• United States
11 Jan 10
you have to be carefull in this kind of weather it dosn't take long for the pipes to freeze the other night I went outside to start the spigot an it was already frozen I had to pour warm water on it an thankfully it was ok
1 person likes this
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
12 Jan 10
An ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure!
@enola1692 (3323)
• United States
13 Jan 10
so true so true an who can afford to have your pipes repaired
@ElicBxn (63235)
• United States
10 Jan 10
We've been lucky with even this cold snap we've covered out outside faucets and opened the laundry room door to let the heat in there and I've run the taps in the bathrooms - mine doesn't have a heater vent, the other one does (its newer)
All our pipes mostly run thru the slab so it would have to be really cold to get those and Texas seldom gets that cold
1 person likes this
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
26 Feb 10
My Fiance discovered an outside tap at Her place had run continuously over one of the cold spells..the water company suggested some BS about a fall of snow having opened it!
As She's on a Meter,so paying for that was expensive...Out of consideration
,they discounted her SEWAGE bill
(Her house has an open forest area out back where the tap is..it would have flowed downhill,not down a drain...)
As She's on a Meter,so paying for that was expensive...Out of consideration,they discounted her SEWAGE bill (Her house has an open forest area out back where the tap is..it would have flowed downhill,not down a drain...)1 person likes this
@bird123 (10632)
• United States
11 Jan 10
Frozen water pipes can be a pain. Remember moving water is harder to freeze. Drip your faucets when the weather gets really cold. If you know how your water is piped in the house you can drip one faucet and move water through all the plumbing. Mine is the hot water faucet in the bathroom. They also make a strip that wraps around your pipes then plugs into the 120 outlet. it heats only when the pipes reach near freezing. Check the hardware store for those.
1 person likes this
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
12 Jan 10
the electric heat wrap sounds like a good idea,don't think I've seen those before..thanks for the tip!
@ramos7881 (344)
• United States
10 Jan 10
Unfortunately, I haven't been as lucky as you. When we went to bed last night, there was plenty of water, but because it was below freezing and we do not have central heat no one in my family bathed. I told them all that we would bathe when we woke up. Of course, the pipes froze and burst during the night so my husband had to come home from work and start replacing pipes under the house. Needless to say, he is having a cold, bad day and my kids still have not showered :( Next time I am telling them to just bathe and then put on 3 shirts, 3 pants and 3 pairs of socks afterwards! This is horrible!
1 person likes this
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
10 Jan 10
You're not having a good Day...
I know that feeling,There's always that moment when you wish you HAD done something you'd planned to do,isn't there?..I'd recommend leaving a light bulb on near the tank,if you have one..it'd be just enough heat to prevent icing up there..Neighbours of My Sister had put a lot of insulation up in their attic a while back..while good for keeping the heat inside the house,it also insulated the attic space so that no heat from the house could get up there,either..They left the house for a day or so over Christmas,and that was enough for their pipes to freeze,and they came back to flooding from the burst pipes..
I SHOULD have central heating,but the Guy I usually get to service the boiler has been overly busy in this weather,and hasn't been back to me to fix things,so that I'm running electric heaters 24/7..My next bill's gonna be scary...
I know that feeling,There's always that moment when you wish you HAD done something you'd planned to do,isn't there?..I'd recommend leaving a light bulb on near the tank,if you have one..it'd be just enough heat to prevent icing up there..Neighbours of My Sister had put a lot of insulation up in their attic a while back..while good for keeping the heat inside the house,it also insulated the attic space so that no heat from the house could get up there,either..They left the house for a day or so over Christmas,and that was enough for their pipes to freeze,and they came back to flooding from the burst pipes..
I SHOULD have central heating,but the Guy I usually get to service the boiler has been overly busy in this weather,and hasn't been back to me to fix things,so that I'm running electric heaters 24/7..My next bill's gonna be scary...@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
26 Feb 10
Would you believe it was only the day before Yesterday I finally got somebody to come look at my Boiler and fix it?!
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
12 Jan 10
Sometimes it takes being without something you might consider essential to truly appreciate having it..thanks for the Post!
