Deep freeze. Pipe question

[Chocaholic]

Ok…all pipes we can reach are now insulated. Will leave some taps open overnight to drip as well.

[NY65912]

Keep the water running, slowly

[fintstone]

Open cabinets under sinks (especially those on outside walls) so more heated air gets in.

In my vacation home< I use a small under sink pump system to return hot water down the cold-water line from the farthest point (from the water heater). It comes on when the hot water side cools to a specified level. It keeps both hot and cold lines from freezing.

[javadog]

Originally Posted by Chocaholic

Ok…all pipes we can reach are now insulated. Will leave some taps open overnight to drip as well.

You can also run water through the pipes periodically, long enough to warm them back up with the 50 or 60° water that is coming into your house from underground. Are usually do this right before I go to bed and then I leave the faucets dripping a little bit.

[fintstone]

Run a bit of hot water now and then too...as water can freeze going out...as much as going in.

[A930Rocket]

Originally Posted by Bob Kontak

Are you supposed to open the outside hand crank valve after shut off? Makes sense to lose any standing water inside.

If you have a shut off inside the house that’s accessible, you can turn that off and then open up the hose bib outside to drain what little water is left. That and put a insulated cover over it. Another type of hose bib shuts off the water and drains it from the exterior.

[Norm K]

Originally Posted by 911 Rod

He's talking about 3 days around the freezing temp in a occupied home here.
Not going into an ice age

That is the Ice Age to many in the south.

_

[greglepore]

There are hose bibs that have the actual actuator inside the structure-these you just turn off, but disconnect anything connected or you'll defeat the purpose.

[javadog]

Even those can freeze if the cold gets deep enough into the wall.

There’s no excuse for having problems with hose bibs, failures are the results of bad architectural design and bad construction.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by javadog

Even those can freeze if the cold gets deep enough into the wall.

There’s no excuse for having problems with hose bibs, failures are the results of bad architectural design and bad construction.

Yep, and there's plenty of both, especially in the South where freezes are rare.

THe big freeze that we had 2 years ago was because not only was there a freeze, but there were power outages too, so people didn't have heat in their homes to keep the homes and pipes warm.

[cjh]

It is no fun freezing water pipes in an unheated ceiling. Many times you don't find out until after they thaw out and then you have a mess. See if you can get heat tape you can wrap around your pipe and cover the tape with insulation. If you can drain the waterpipes, try and blow them out and back flush them with RV antifreeze until the other end runs pink.

[juanbenae]

i keep a radiator type electric heater in my well house with a programable timer that starts it around 11PM and it runs till 7AM. Even though my pipes are sch 80 PVC and insulated sleep better with the heater on when the bitter cold shows.

the radiator type heaters are a very safe electric option compared to anything that glows red to heat.

[Arizona_928]

Fun fact.

The water is supercooled in the pipe and the pressure the pipe pushes on the water is what keeps it from freezing. Thicker pipe leads to the water being able to stay liquid at a lower temp under the freezing point.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by juanbenae

i keep a radiator type electric heater in my well house with a programable timer that starts it around 11PM and it runs till 7AM. Even though my pipes are sch 80 PVC and insulated sleep better with the heater on when the bitter cold shows.

the radiator type heaters are a very safe electric option compared to anything that glows red to heat.

It's 20º now (1050pm). It dropped below 32º at about 445pm. It's supposed to bottom out at 16º. The next time the temp is supposed to get above freezing is noon on Sat. < edit > since I started typing this response, the temp has dropped to 19º, LOL! < /edit >
The red line is the temp. The thick horizontal blue line is 32º

Originally Posted by Arizona_928

Fun fact.

The water is supercooled in the pipe and the pressure the pipe pushes on the water is what keeps it from freezing. Thicker pipe leads to the water being able to stay liquid at a lower temp under the freezing point.

freezing point at sea level and standard pressure is 32ºF. freezing point at sea level and 145psia (160psig) is 31.88ºF. Since my pump switch is set to kick on at 40 and off at 60, I'm guessing the freezing point of the water in my pipes is maybe 31.96ºF. I'm not sure how much help that is.

[NY65912]

Remember, hot water freezes faster than cold water.

[Chocaholic]

Originally Posted by 911 Rod

He's talking about 3 days around the freezing temp in a occupied home here.
Not going into an ice age

Not exactly. High today is 21 and it will be 12 degrees from midnight until 8am tomorrow. Won’t get back above freezing until Monday.

[slow&rusty]

2 degrees with the wind chill here in Houston this morning. Time to put away the flip flops.

[masraum]

15º outside, heat's still running, and the water is still flowing. This weather sucks!

[masraum]

Originally Posted by slow&rusty

2 degrees with the wind chill here in Houston this morning. Time to put away the flip flops.

Bah!



Granted, I'm inside and wearing long, thick wool socks with sheepskin slippers (wool on the inside), and a hoodie.

I'm heating up breakfast, so put the air fryer (small one) on my desk with the exhaust pointing at me. LOL!

The temp is trending up. 2º up, now 17º. The sun's coming up. We'll open the curtains in a bit to let a little of the sun's heat in.

[911 Rod]

Originally Posted by masraum

The sun on your roof will add a few degrees to your attic. Maybe enough to be above freezing.