Before the cold arrives
- Disconnect and drain garden hoses. Close the interior valve to outdoor spigots if you have one.
- Seal gaps where pipes, cables and vents pass through exterior walls and rim joists.
- Insulate pipes in crawl spaces, garages and along exterior walls.
- Find your main shutoff and make sure it turns.
During a cold snap
- Keep the thermostat steady day and night.
- Open cabinet doors under sinks on exterior walls.
- Let cold and hot taps on vulnerable lines run at a slow drip.
- Keep the garage door closed if water lines run through it.
If you are leaving town
- Set the heat to at least 55 degrees.
- Shut off the main water supply and open faucets to drain pressure.
- Ask someone to walk through every couple of days.
- Consider a low-temperature alarm.
Thawing a frozen pipe
Open the faucet first. Apply gentle heat starting at the faucet end and working back: a hair dryer, a heating pad or a space heater in the room. Never use a flame. Stay with it. If water starts to leak as it thaws, close the main.
If it bursts
Close the main, cut power to wet areas if safe, and take photos. A plumber repairs the pipe. We handle frozen pipe water damage cleanup, including wet insulation in exterior walls.