Home owners that are situated in areas that experience the four seasons tend to encounter a lot of problems compared to those who are residing in a tropical country. Plumbing issues usually come and increases during the winter season. Because of the cold season, water stored in pipes gets frozen. Once the water freezes, it expands which causes the pipes to burst. As you can see, one problem can immediately lead you to another problem. So to help you get pass through this, here are some things that you must do before the winter season arrives.
- Hose Bib Usage
The hose bib is used for taps installed outside. This is to avoid the frost from accumulating which can eventually cause the pipe and the faucet to burst because of the concealed pressure. Before winter season arrives, make sure to get all the hose that are connected to your outdoor faucets. Make sure to gather all the outdoor faucets including the sources of water in one file then install a shut-off valve to be safe during the cold season. For additional protection, you can purchase a hose bib in a local hardware store near you.
- Insulate the Pipes
One of the easiest preventive measures over pipe bursting is by insulating the pipes. Pipes tend to burst because of the snow and the frozen pipes. You need to locate all the pipelines that can possibly accumulate frost during the winter such as those pipes that are located in attics, basements, crawl spaces and most especially those pipes outdoor.
- Inspect Kitchen Drains
Be mindful of the things that go down your drain. Once you just let things be washed down, you will certainly encounter problems at most unexpected times. Fatty substances that are washed down the drain can accumulate and encourage the build-up over time. When winter arrives, the build-up will be the first one to get frozen. One way to avoid this is to turn on the washing machine or the dishwasher overnight. This is to ensure that the hot water is preserved and the pressure of the water is maintained at a certain level.
- Sprinkler Maintenance
During the winter season, you will obviously not need a water sprinkler around your yard. It would be energy efficient and economical to just turn them off. With this, you need to turn on the shut-off valve then drain the stored water from the pipelines. This is to avoid any water that is stored from freezing which could possibly lead you to a bigger problem.
- House Pumping
One important thing to avoid pipelines that are fixed in ceilings or walls from freezing is to the house temperature. You have to allow the warm air to circulate around your house including the walls and ceilings. This is to warm them up and avoid the pipes from freezing. One way to do this is by setting the temperature of the house. Another thing that you can do is by leaving your cabinet doors open. With this, the warm air can circulate freely around your house and the possibility of the pipes behind walls to get frozen is reduced.