With winter upon us, it’s a great time to review basic winter plumbing tips to keep your house flowing smoothly. Often times people neglect their plumbing during the winter months, causing flooding, water damage, and broken pipes. This creates the need for expensive repairs and can put a damper on your holiday celebrations and family gatherings.
Keep storm drains and gutters clear of debris.
During autumn, leaves and other debris will fall from the trees and can land in your gutter or cover your storm drains. This debris can cause flooding and water damage to your home or property. By taking the time to make sure your gutters are clear throughout the winter months, you can prevent unwanted debris from getting into your sewer line (by way of the downspouts, which are commonly attached to the sewer system), this can lead to serious clogs or backups, and expensive repairs. Cleaning gutters is annoying, but by taking the time to do this simple home maintenance, you will save yourself a lot of time and hassle of having to clear your main sewage line, or other downspout lines.
Sump pumps and catch basins
Some properties have sump pumps, which transfers water from one area to another, or from lower elevation to higher elevation. These pumps should be serviced and maintain every 6 months to ensure proper functionality. This includes cleaning out the pumps catch basin and checking for flow operations (making sure that the pump is pumping water). When pumps go out, the most common issue is property flooding, and pump replacement. By doing a service on these every 6 months, you will stay ahead of any pump issues, allowing you to deal with issues before your property is flooded. Also, by checking your pump for functionality, you will ensure that the pump doesn’t get burnt out and need to be replaced.
Protect pipes from cold weather
With winter comes cold temperatures, this can lead to broken pipes due to freezing water on external hose bibs or frozen water lines. By installing inexpensive hose bib covers on your external hose bibs, you will help prevent broken water lines due to freezing temperatures. Another great tips is to make sure that you leave your home at 52 degrees if you are taking a vacation. There is nothing worse than coming back from a vacation to find that your water lines froze and broke. Imagine all the water that would be running if you were out of town for a week! By keeping the heat on low, you can keep your pipes warm and prevent freezing.
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