Keeping Pipes Flowing In Winter

If you're worried about the pipes in your house freezing or bursting in winter, home repair expert, and CBS News Contributor Bob Vila has a few tips on how to prevent these problems.

When pipes freeze, it's usually because they were not properly insulated during installation or because a home's heating system has failed. Either situation can be disastrous, potentially causing thousands of dollars in property damage.

If pipes in the walls aren't properly insulated, they can freeze and rupture. A 1/8-inch crack in a pipe can release up to 250 gallons of water a day, soaking floors, rugs and furniture, Vila says.

Checking for Frozen Pipes

If your pipes are freezing, the first thing you'll probably notice is that when you turn on a faucet, the water will only trickle out, or won't come out at all.

When this happens, immediately turn the water off at the main shut-off valve, which is usually located near the water meter. If you can isolate the branch that is frozen, you only need to shut that area off. Be sure to leave the faucets turned on to reduce pressure when the ice thaws.

You can sometimes thaw a pipe using a hair dryer, but never try to thaw the pipe with an open flame, Vila says. The sudden burst of heat can rupture a pipe.

If you can't locate the source of the problem or are unable to thaw a frozen pipe, call a plumber immediately.

Basic Preventative Measures

To safeguard against pipes freezing, you can:

• Keep the temperature inside your home at a minimum of 55 degrees Fahrenheit.
• During the coldest days, let a trickle of hot and cold water run from faucet that is farthest from the water meter or from one that has frozen in the past. This will keep the water moving so that it cannot freeze.
• Open kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors under sinks to allow warm air from the room to circulate around the pipes.
• If temperatures are extremely cold, place a protected light bulb near exposed water pipes in open crawl spaces, or where the pipes enter the building. This will provide a safe source of heat to keep the pipes warm.

Locate and insulate pipes most susceptible to freezing - typically, those near outer walls, in crawl spaces, or in the attic. Depending on how severe your weather is, you may be able to get by with just wrapping pipes with foam insulation.

For pipes that have given you trouble in the past, you can insulate them with any of the following techniques.

• Heated pipe tape can be purchased at most hardware stores. It costs about $25 for a 36-inch roll. This is basically just a length of wire that generates heat. You run it along a length of pipe and cover it with insulation.

  For those concerned about a fire risk, a product called Safeheat may provide a good solution. Instead of plugging the heat tape directly into a wall outlet, you plug it into this unit, which itself is plugged into the wall. If the tape dvelops a short or begins to draw too much current, it will blow a fuse in the unit, cutting off the power. These cost about $50.

• For plastic PVC pipes, you can still use the heat tape. Vila recommends wrapping aluminum foil around PVC's in conjunction with the tape to help spread heat. Vila advises that the SAFEHEAT unit be used to prevent the risk of an electrical short.
• If you are away from your home for prolonged periods, you may want to use a device called Sensaphone from SmartHome Products, which allows you to check up on your heating and cooling system by telephone.

If you forget to call your machine, it will call you or whoever you have programmed it to contact when it senses an extreme drop in the temperature or other problem.
Taking the time to ensure that your pipes have the proper insulation can prevent severe property damage and save you thousands of dollars down the road, Vila says.