Just how bad can the damage get if a pipe bursts inside your home due to freezing? Let's say you leave the house in the morning for work and moments later a common half-inch water supply line abruptly ruptures due to ice formation. By the time you return home from work that afternoon, as much as 20,000 gallons of water may have potentially inundated your house, depending on your municipal water pressure. In any case, water damage to structure and possessions will be substantial.
Steps you can take to prevent winter plumbing problems such as pipe bursts are always less expensive (and traumatic) than dealing with the aftermath of a major or even minor water inundation. Here are three things to do:
- Install slip-on foam pipe insulation sleeves on water supply lines. These are readily available at any home center and sized to common pipe sizes. Insulate all supply lines anywhere and everywhere you can reach them to slip the sleeves on. That typically includes the crawl space underneath the house and also inside any wall spaces you can get to. Water lines may also be routed through the garage and attic.
- Prevent frigid outdoor air from contacting pipes by sealing openings in the exterior of the house. Any holes in the exterior wall or air gaps around pipes or electrical conduits should be caulked or sealed with expanding spray foam insulation in a can. Defects like missing or loose crawl space access doors should be repaired, too.
- Check your main water shutoff valve. At the beginning of the winter season, test the valve to verify that it operates correctly. Call a plumber if it's hard to turn. If you notice signs of a frozen pipe during the winter—for instance, if water in the house or at an individual fixture suddenly stops or water pressure drops very low—turn off water at the main shutoff valve, open faucets to expedite thawing, and call a plumber without delay.
Learn more about preventing pipe bursts and dealing with the aftermath if it happens by contacting the water damage experts at Rytech, Inc.
