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Whether preparing their New Jersey residence for a lengthy vacation to the sunny south or just bracing for the coming cold temperatures, many homeowners will soon drainpipes to prevent freezing. The steps to accomplish this late-fall maintenance are well within the average property owner’s ability and can save you thousands of dollars in expensive repairs.

The Risks

If water pipes in your New Jersey home travel through an unheated basement or crawl space, you run the risk of having standing water freeze in the pipe, expand, and burst the pipe. You will not know of the split pipe until the ice thaws, and you have a flooded basement and the damage that accompanies it.

The Remedy

By simply preventing water from standing in pipes when temperatures are expected to plunge, you save the pipes and your belongings. You can drainpipe sizes to prevent freezing if water continues to enter the draining pipes, so turn off your water first. This may mean more than one cutoff valve but start at the main source of water going into your home, which could be outside.

Toilets, too

When you flush a toilet, the bowl empties, and the tank refills, so shut off each toilet’s supply at the line going up into the tank, from the wall.

Drain the Pipes

To drain pipes to prevent freezing, you must empty the standing water even though no additional pressure is pushing on the pipes. Flush all the toilets. Turn on all sink and tub faucets to drain them. This will get much of the water out, but some will still be in bends and low spots.

Force the Water Down

Start at the highest level of your home and insert an air compressor hose into the pipe to shoot air into the pipes. You will need to keep doing this to move standing water along. Move down to the lowest point of your home, repeating the steps.

For more guidance on the proper way to drainpipes to prevent freezing this winter, contact us at Pipe Works Services

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