Plumbing

Winter is coming! And with it, the cold weather and the potential for pipes to freeze. If you’re a homeowner, it’s essential to protect your pipes from freezing so that you don’t end up with a costly repair bill. Our team here at Solutions Plumbing see it repeatedly; homeowners do not protect their pipes and find out the expensive way they need fixing. Not only are frozen pipes bad for your house, but they can also be incredibly stressful for homeowners, especially in winter when you have no water coming into your property. 

So, the main question is, how do you protect your pipes in the winter? The quick answer is you can use various techniques, including insulation, pipe-draining solutions and many more. Our team here at Solutions Plumbing have been helping homeowners for several years find the best way to protect their pipes; if you have any questions or queries, you can pick up the phone and speak to our team today. 

But for now, let’s dive into how you can protect your pipes during the coming cold winter months! You can read other important topics right here. 

The pipes running throughout your home will always have a small amount of water in them, even when the taps aren’t turned on or used; this is simply because they do not drain every time the taps are turned off, and it is not possible. 

The water left inside your pipes can freeze, especially when the temperature drops significantly; this leaves your home at risk of wholly frozen pipes. Even the smallest amount of water can cause an issue. Not only does it cause water supply issues, but it also leaves your home at risk of flooding and burst pipes throughout the pipework.

Of course! We cannot emphasise enough how important it is you protect the pipework in your home; if you do not, you are leaving yourself open to a whole host of problems. If you do not protect your pipes, especially in winter, you will find yourself without water or leaks and flooding issues, which nobody wants inside their home. As we all know, water expands when it freezes, which can easily damage the pipes across your home if they are not appropriately protected. 

One of the biggest reasons to protect your pipework is that if there is any damage, such as cracks or burst pipes due to the expansion of frozen water in the winter, you may not even know about it until the weather turns back to gradually warming again. This is because the water will remain frozen and cause issues after the winter weather has subsided. 

Protecting your pipes during winter is one of the essential parts of preparing your home for winter. Please do not ignore your pipework; it can cause severe issues over time if they are not cared for properly.

There are a handful of ways you can avoid frozen pipes throughout your home; our team here at Solutions Plumbing have been operating as plumbers for several years and continue to provide the same advice year after year to our customers who are not sure how to protect the pipework in their home. 

If the cold weather is on its way, now is the time to start considering what you need to do to protect your pipes; follow these easy steps below to prevent the pipes throughout your home from freezing. 

Insulate Your Pipes! 

You can insulate your pipes directly by using a pipe sponge; you can also insulate your water tank to protect any water leaving the tank cold. 

Use Your Heating 

We recommend keeping your heating between 12-15C; some people prefer their home to be warm where, whereas others prefer keeping it cool but having your temperature on will add another layer of protection to your pipes. 

Open Your Loft Hatch 

This one may seem counter-productive, but if you open your loft hatch even a little, it allows the warm air from your living areas to drift up into your loft, protecting the pipework in the loft spaces. 

Run Your Taps! 

The water in your pipework will find it harder to freeze if the taps are regularly used; for example, if you have a bathroom that is used more than another one, make sure you alternate. If you have outdoor taps that do not get used in winter, turn them on now and again to allow the water to flow, even if just for a second. 

Drain Your Water Systems 

You need to drain your system if you know you will be away from your property for a long time during the winter months. If you are unsure how to do this, speak to our team, and we can provide this service.

As our first point is essential, we wanted to touch on it more than simply stating that you should insulate your home; it can make a massive difference to your home’s pipework. It is, without a doubt, one of the best ways you can keep your pipes and water tank from freezing; with a range of piping insulation and tank jackets, you will be able to avoid frozen pipes this winter. 

There are a few areas you should focus on if you are insulating your home intending to keep your pipes clear; they are as follows;

Outdoor Pipes

These will, without a doubt, be the first place your pipes will freeze; that is why you should start here; you will find pipework such as drainpipes, overflow pipes and heating pipes on the exterior of your home; one thing to remember is you need to protect the pipe and the joints! Do not forget the joints! Also, do not forget to try and cover your external taps if you can; this will help prevent the water from freezing at the exit points.

Colder Areas Of Your Home

This would be areas such as your loft space, the garage, any basement spaces you have, and anywhere in your home that is not directly affected by heating solutions and where the warmth does not reach. 

Water Tanks 

You must remember to insulate your water tank, especially in the attic or a location in your home that is cold; they are often the most significant issues when it comes to cold weather snaps. Your water tank will be the leading cause of burst water pipes throughout your home; insulating at the source can help!

Ensuring that your boiler is regularly serviced and well-maintained can reduce the risk of pipework issues. A professional will identify potential problem areas and advise you on the necessary steps to prevent further issues. You may be triggered to have your boiler serviced after the summer months when you turn the heating on and find it does not work correctly or at all, but even if it is up and running without issues, you should always have your boiler serviced coming into the winter months. 

A boiler expert will be able to come to your home and carry out the service; by doing so, they will let you know whether or not it is winter ready and if you need to take any further precautions to help prevent your pipework from freezing over.

One way to help prevent your pipework from freezing over is by encouraging warm air to flow through your home; this can be done by opening doors between rooms, using extractor fans in the kitchen and bathroom and making sure that any draughts are sealed. If you have a chimney breast in any room that is not used frequently, make sure it is boarded up, and remove any areas in the home where there is a draft. 

Using your heating, you can keep the airflow throughout your home moving; this will help keep the different rooms in your home warm and protect the pipework.

A dripping tap can waste up to 15 litres of water daily, so if you have any leaking taps, make sure they are fixed as soon as possible. A quick and easy way to help reduce the risk of your pipework freezing is by fixing any dripping taps, as this will help prevent any excess moisture from escaping and getting into the air in your home, causing dampness! 

Do not believe the myth that leaving a tap dripping can help prevent freezing pipes; in truth, you may find yourself in worse trouble if you do this, as it can cause a freezing backlog up through your sink pipes, causing more issues in the long run. 

Please make sure all of your taps are shut off completely all the time when not being used. We still recommend running your taps that aren’t often used to get some water flowing through them to keep the water from freezing, but please remember to turn them off!

If you are going away on a trip or vacation, please turn your water off at the meter. This is a standard precautionary measure to prevent burst pipes while you’re gone. If possible, open all of your taps slightly before turning the water off so that there isn’t as much pressure when you turn it back on when you come back. But please remember to shut them off once you have drained the system. 

If you come back to your house and find that your pipes have frozen, don’t panic. There are a few things you can do to try to thaw them out and get your water flowing again. 

• Turn off the supply of water coming into your property at the stop tap; remember to switch off your boiler! 
• Open all of the taps in your home; this will drain the system as quickly as possible from the pipes that are not frozen; we recommend saving some of the water if you need to for toilet flushing. When the water stops flowing, turn all the taps back off. 
• Contact our team here at Solutions Plumbing; we will send a plumber to your home to help find the frozen pipe and fix it as quickly as possible; this is especially important if you have found a crack, leak or any damage to the pipework. 
• Speak to an expert!

If you’re experiencing cold weather or have forecasted bad weather and are worried about your pipes, don’t fret! There are a few things you can do to protect them. First and foremost, make sure they are adequately insulated. You can also pour some boiling water down the drain periodically to help keep them clear. And finally, contact a professional immediately if you have any concerns or notice anything unusual. 

Solutions Plumbing & Heating is here for all your plumbing needs – give us a call today! Our team have been local plumbers for several years; during this time, we have perfected our abilities to keep pipes and your home safe from the winter weather. 

To find out more, please pick up the phone and speak to our team today; we are always more than happy to help you in any way we can.