A water line that froze during very low temperatures and then burst when temperatures warmed up can causes a mess!

By taking a stroll through your house and inspecting hidden piping you could minimize potential leaks, which would save you from ruined property, a big cleanup and money.

Here's how...

1. Locate any areas in your home that are drafty and allowing cold air to enter your home. Typically this would be garages, crawl spaces, and around the trim of windows and doors. 
   1. Sealing up these drafts will help better avoid frozen pipes and also tighten up your home thus reducing your heating bill. The reduction may be minimal, but money is money.
2. Drip...Drip...Drip... If temperatures are predicted to drop into the 20s let faucets run (a drip or slow stream) throughout that cold time to keep water moving and prevent freezing.
   1. Open cabinet or vanity doors in kitchens or bathrooms that have piping that is run in outside walls to bring some of the warm air into those spots.
3. Maintain at least 55 degrees indoors. Particularly if you're going to be away for a few days. 
   1. If you're going to be away for an extended period of time you should have a friend, neighbor, relative or someone that typically does work in your home every week check things out for you. 
      1. It's a great idea to have your local heating contractor perform an annual tune-up on your heating systemso that you know it's in good working order. Better to err on the side of caution. Many freeze-ups are caused by boilers and furnaces failing.
4. If you do find that despite these best efforts some water lines have indeed frozen, do NOT attempt to defrost them with a torch or open flame of any sort.
   1. Allow them to thaw naturally. Turn up the heat!
5. Lastly, the reader should know that your homeowner's insurance, in most cases, provides for reimbursement of damage caused by water flooding from frozen burst pipes, but NOT the actual plumbing repair.

It's often a good idea to have your local plumber inspect your piping every year to avoid situations caused by frozen pipes.

I've written articles and blog posts similar to these mostly every year... take a look at a few:Avoid frozen pipes during frigid weather. How to avoid burst pipes. 

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