Winterizing Your Plumbing
If you own a home, prepare your plumbing for winter. Freezing temperatures can harm plumbing pipes. Without protecting your pipes, they will burst, leak, and cause serious damage to your home. Here’s how can you act now to get ready for cold weather.
Prepare Your Plumbing for Winter by Protecting Your Outdoor Pipes
Outdoor faucets and hose bibbs are very susceptible to damage in the winter. When you prepare your plumbing for winter, shut off the faucet and detach the hose. Open the spigot fully so that any water remaining in the pipe can drain out completely. When you don’t remove this water, it could freeze and cause pipes to crack and burst.
Invest in frost-free hose bibbs, as they offer additional protection against freezing. If you prefer not to upgrade your hose bibb, add a protective cover to insulate the faucet from cold temperatures, snow, and ice.
Leave Your Water Dripping to Prepare Your Plumbing for Winter
Exposed pipes, like those in the basement, are uninsulated and are at an increased risk of freezing when temperatures drop.
If there is a sudden cold snap, leave your faucets running at a slow trickle. Water that is moving in the pipe is less likely to freeze and lead to a burst pipe.
Be Careful When Cooking
The holiday season means lots of cooking for many families. As you prepare your plumbing for winter, know what should and should not go down a kitchen drain.
Never place bones, grease, coffee grounds, fat, and cooking oil down the drain. Even if you have a garbage disposal, this debris is prone to congealing in pipes and creating a blockage.
Don’t Forget About Downspouts as You Prepare Your Plumbing for Winter
Outdoor drainage is critical when snow and ice start to melt. If your gutters are clogged with yard debris and leaves, water will not be able to move away from your yard and might instead pool around the foundation. After it snows, clear off your outdoor drains as soon as possible.
Reifsteck Home Inspections provides home inspection services to Champaign, Illinois, and the surrounding area. Contact us to schedule an inspection for your new home.