Winter is a big issue for house and homeowner- especially if you have actually moved and your house is setting empty. Why? PIPES!

If your house gets too cold, the water in your pipes can freeze over night and then burst in the day when it warms back up. This leaves the capacity for comprehensive flooding and water damage to your home. The pipelines you need to be most concerned about are those that have the most direct exposure to the cold-- outside hose pipe faucets, swimming pool supply lines, underground lawn sprinkler, and plumbing in unheated basements, crawl spaces, attics and garages. Pipelines that run versus exterior walls are likewise at danger.

What to do ...

When it's cold outside, you ought to periodically examine all the faucets in your house. If it does not work or water is simply a trickle you might have frozen water in your pipelines. Attempt to find the frozen location by looking in the location most likely to freeze- i.e. the coldest. Use a heat lamp, space heater, hair clothes dryer or electrical heat pad to begin to thaw out the pipelines. Remember to keep the faucet open as you work. That's because running water will help melt the ice quicker. Apply heat until complete water pressure is brought back, then think about going to your neighborhood hardware store to acquire insulation for the areas of the pipe that froze (to help prevent it from happening again).

DO NOT utilize any sort of blow torch or open flame to warm the pipes. I can not worry this enough, so let me say it again. DO NOT utilize an open flame. First off, an open flame is a fire hazard and if you are working in a confined location there is a risk of carbon monoxide gas poisoning. Every year there is a story in the news of some person burning down their house or suffocating themselves to death while working on frozen pipelines.

The 2nd factor not to use an open flame is if it gets too hot you can melt your pipes (particularly PVC plastic pipes). Third, too much heat too rapidly develops the capacity for a surge. That's since water expands as it gets hot. A blow torch or other device will trigger the water to boil, and boiling water caught in the middle of a frozen pipe has no location to expand- so it explodes.

The last piece of suggestions is always the best ... If you fail to unthaw the pipe, call a certified plumbing professional before the pipe breaks.

How to keep it from happening ...

- Your home needs to have inside valves on your outdoor supply of water lines. Close them, then open the outside faucet and let the water drain. Leave the outdoors faucet open all winter.

- Drain and store outside garden pipes.

- If you have not currently done so, drain pipes the water from your swimming pool and sprinkler system system. As pointed out above, insulate pipes that's most susceptible to freezing. You can discover materials at your local hardware shop, House Depot, or Lowes.

- Throughout extreme winter, let the faucets drip. Although it's no assurance, even a trickle of water can assist avoid pipelines from freezing and an open faucet provides the water someplace to run when it begins to warm up.

- Keep the home temperature level set to no lower than 55 degrees Fahrenheit. I understand it's appealing to turn the thermostat down when you leave town for a couple of weeks or if you have an unsold home that is setting empty, but the higher heat bill is rapidly balanced out by the cost of fixing a pipeline and tidying up water damage.

- Lastly, if you experience flooding or water damage from a broken pipe, make certain to watch the home for mold or mildew. Black mold can be a serious after effect to a flooded house that's far even worse to handle than the actual water damage.