Frozen pipes are the last thing that anyone wants to deal with during the winter. Not only are frozen pipes an inconvenience when you want to take a shower or when you need water for cooking, your pipes can also burst and lead to even more problems for you to deal with. While plumbers in Atlanta can help you out of your icy situation, there are plenty of things that you can do to prevent your pipes from becoming frozen in the first place.
Drain Water
Freezing is most common with outside pipes that are exposed to the cold, pipes in unheated interior areas, and adjacent pipes in exterior walls that are un-insulated. Plumbers in Atlanta will more than likely advise you to fully drain your water sprinkler supply lines and the water in your swimming pool. It’s best that you not put any antifreeze into your pipes unless the manufacturer instructions or your installer instructs you to do so.
Properly Store Hoses
If you have water hoses on your property, remove them, drain them, and properly store them. Close up all of the interior valves that supply water to your exterior hose bibs. Open up your outside hose bibs and let all of the water drain out.
Check for Other Water Supply Lines
There are other areas around your home where you might have unheated water supply lines. Such areas include the basement, garage, attic, crawl spaces, and underneath bathroom and kitchen cabinets. If you find pipes in these areas that haven’t been insulated, you’ll want to insulate both the hot and the cold water pipes.
Install Specific Water Pipe Insulation Products
If you ask a plumber in Atlanta for advice on preventing frozen pipes, they may advise you to purchase specific products made for pipe insulation. Examples of these products include pipe sleeves and UL-approved heat cables or heat tape. There are some cases where using newspaper for insulation can be effective, but this is best used for geographical areas that don’t receive prolonged or frequent below freezing temperatures.
Preventative Action
Just like it’s best that you have preventative maintenance done on your plumbing system to keep it in good working order, there are also preventative steps that you can take to keep your pipes from freezing over in the winter. Specifically, you’ll want to make sure that you keep the door to your garage closed if you have water supply lines located inside. Whenever the heater is on, open up your bathroom and kitchen cabinet doors so that some of the heat can warm up those pipes.
No matter how well prepared you think you are for the winter season, there’s nothing wrong with being extra prepared, and that’s especially true with the possibility of frozen pipes.
Business Name can provide you with expert tips for keeping your pipes nice and warm this winter. Turn to plumbers in Atlanta for the best and most effective pipe insulation methods.
