A frozen pipe poses a serious cold weather risk to Indianapolis area homeowners – when a pipe is frozen, it may burst, leading to serious water damage in the house. Outdoor pipes and exposed pipes on exterior walls are especially vulnerable to freezing in the cold. Exterior faucets should be winterized each fall, to help avoid pipes freezing.
Williams Comfort Air guides you through the process of winterizing exterior wall faucets and ways to prevent pipes from freezing this season. In case you do suffer from frozen pipes this winter, we also share instructions for thawing frozen pipe sections after a freeze to help protect your home from damage.
The outdoor faucet where you attach a garden hose is vulnerable to freezing during the cold if it is not properly winterized. Before cold weather hits, make sure to take these steps that protect your outdoor water pipes and faucets from a freeze.
For regular hose bibs:
For frost free hose bibs:
Frost free hose bibs are typically installed in newer homes. These outdoor faucets are less likely to experience a frozen pipe because the shutoff sits farther into the house, where it is exposed to warmer temperatures. The supply line slopes downward from the valve to the faucet, so water comes out the faucet should freezing and thawing occur. If your home does not have frost free bibs, consider upgrading before winter to help safeguard these outdoor pipes from freezing – a plumber can easily and affordably perform this upgrade for you.
To further prevent pipes from freezing, insulate hose bib faucets and their supply pipes. Styrofoam hose bib covers can be purchased at most hardware stores and installed over the exterior fixture, shielding it from the cold. Foam insulation sleeves can also be applied around the pipe to provide enhanced protection from the cold.
Any exposed pipes that run outside the home or through unheated areas of the house, like attics, basements, or crawl spaces, should also be insulated when preventing frozen pipes. Pipes that sit along exterior walls can freeze before pipes that are located towards the interior of the home and need extra precautions when extreme outdoor temperatures hit. Open cabinet doors below sinks that sit along these walls, which allows warm air from the home to circulate in these areas and keep pipes warm. Also, open faucets to these fixtures and allow water to steadily trickle that keeps water moving – when water sits in pipes, it is more likely to freeze.
When you experience frozen outdoor pipes, the risk of damage due to leaking water is high. Frozen water expands inside pipes pushes against the pipe walls, stressing and straining the material, which often leads to a crack or burst pipe. If a section of pipe is damaged by a freezer, a major water leak may result once the frozen water thaws. Frozen pipes can thaw on their own and go undetected – when pipes that run inside walls or below the home sustain damage, leaks can go unnoticed for a considerable time, causing severe water damage. This is an incredibly common issue which accounts for about 20% of all property damage claims made to homeowners' insurance companies, with the average claim resulting in over $10,000 in damages.
If your outdoor hose bib freezes, take these steps to thaw the pipe and prevent frozen pipes damage as quickly as possible:
If the water supply pipe to the hose bib freezes, do the following:
If a pipe on an exterior wall freeze, this is how to address the frozen area:
If you do not feel up to thawing frozen pipes on your own, leave it to your trusted plumbers at Williams Comfort Air. We thaw outdoor frozen pipes safely, inspect for damage, replace burst pipes, and repair leaks caused by freezing. Contact us today to schedule service-emergency repair help is available when you experience plumbing issues after-hours.