News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
With below freezing temperatures becoming a normalcy, local plumbers are advising home owners to winterize your foundations.
Putnam Plumbing Owner Gary Brown said for starters, water hoses should be removed from outdoor faucets.
“All you really need to do is take them loose,” Brown said “The faucet that is installed is frost free. If you do not take that hose loose, it won’t drain out. It won’t be frost free and operate under its proper function.”
Brown said during his experience, temperatures around 20 degrees with a wind make for perfect pipe freezing conditions. Brown said not protecting your faucets could cost you thousands of dollars as undrained water can freeze and damage your pipes.
“In the spring when you go out there and get to using that for the first time, whether you are washing your car, watering your lawn, whatever you may be doing,” Brown said. “Pressure washing, whatever it may be. If you notice a drop in pressure on that thing, you need to pay attention. That water could be running inside the wall, inside the foundation, in your garage and potentially causing thousands in property damage getting wet.”
Other helpful practices include closing vents and sealing cracks to keep cold out of your crawl spaces. Brown said this can also be achieved by investing in automated vents.
“Even if you wanted to upgrade to an auto-closing vent,” Brown said. “Auto-closing vents would actually closed based on the temperature, so you won’t even have to worry about doing that seasonally.”
Brown said to make sure all pipes are not exposed and keep a close watch on lines close to a wall. Brown said for very cold nights, open your cabinets and let water drip out of the faucet.
