Preparing your pipes for winter is a must-do for homeowners. A few easy steps have the potential of saving you thousands of dollars this season. Don’t wait for temperatures to drop any lower without taking the proper precautions.
Exposed Pipes: Any unheated location in your home is at risk to some frozen pipes. These areas include the basement, crawl spaces, garage, under the kitchen, bathroom cabinets, and the attic. All of these pipes both hot and cold should be well insulated. Insulating these pipes will decrease the chances of your pipes freezing. You can purchase pipe insulation at any hardware store. The insulation will slow the decrease in temperature of the pipe.
Outdoor Pipes: If you still have a garden hose hooked up outside, unhook it and take it inside immediately. A garden hose has the potential to cause some serious damage to your pipes. If you haven’t already drained your sprinkler system, wait until a warmer day when the temperatures reach well above freezing in order to keep the water being drained from freezing inside the pipes.
Indoor Pipes: Sometimes people have issues with pipes in even heated locations freezing. If you experience this problem in your home during the winter, consider splurging this year for some additional wall insulation. A few hundred dollars now is nothing compared to the damage a burst pipe could do.
