03/28/2024
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By Erin Smith

When temperatures plunge below freezing, there comes the risk for frozen water lines, which can break leading to costly repair bills. Taking a few simple steps to prevent your pipes from freezing can stop broken water lines from occurring.

According to the American Red Cross, the pipes which are most likely to freeze are those located on the exterior walls of a building, water lines that are in unheated areas such as basements and crawl spaces, and pipes that are directly exposed to the cold.

David Beyer, manager of The Big Blue Store in Elizabethtown, said there are some steps you can take to protect your water lines and water pumps from freezing.

“The biggest thing to remember is insulating everything,” said Beyer.

One step you can take is to wrap plastic and insulation around exposed pipes faucets. Beyer said if you get rain, the plastic prevents it from getting to the pipe. He said, if you don’t have insulation available, you can use cloths or a blanket.

Beyer also said there are insulated caps you can purchase to cover your outside faucets to protect them from the cold and ice.

Beyer also said don’t leave your outside hoses hooked up to your faucets. Remove your hoses, drain them and store them. Beyer said when you leave hoses hooked up, water backs up and then it can build up pressure and the water can freeze causing the the pipe to split apart.

“People leave their water hoses hooked up and the water in it freezes,” said Beyer.

He added don’t forget your water pumps, as well.

Beyer said you can install a heat lamp in the well house and use a thermostatic plug. The thermostatic plug will allow the light to turn on at 37 degrees and will turn the light off when it reaches 50 degrees.

If you live in a mobile home that has not been underpinned, Beyer advises wrapping insulation around the exposed water lines underneath the mobile home.

“The biggest thing to remember is not to leave your pipes exposed (to the cold air),” said Beyer.

Temperatures are forecast to remain in 30s today and drop to 20 degrees overnight before temperatures moderating into the 60s for the rest of the week.

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