There are a few steps that homeowners must take before winter approaches to make sure that their living spaces are well equipped to handle the inclement weather the season brings. One important step towards winterizing your home is preventing your pipes from freezing, which is a significant concern for residential plumbing throughout the area. Frozen pipes can occur just about anywhere in your home where pipes encounter too much cold without sufficient insulation.
WHY ARE FROZEN PIPES SO BAD?
Not only to frozen pipes mean clogged pipes, but they are also at risk of bursting. This can lead to devastating flooding in your home and expensive pipe repairs. To really understand just how detrimental of an issue this is, it’s first important to know how pipe bursting happens.
PIPES BURST DUE TO PRESSURE
That’s right. Many people believe that pipes burst (or break) when they freeze because water expands in volume when it does so. This is because the molecular structure of ice is different than that of liquid water, and therefore takes up more space. But this is actually not the reason your pipes burst—pressure is.
As the water within your plumbing system freezes and expands, it pushes any remaining water toward closed faucets. This is what creates such a large pressure build-up. As a result of this pressure, a lateral bursting can easily occur along the pipes. The part of the pipe in the most danger is the “upstream” part, because the water on the other side still has plenty of space to absorb the pressure rise.
CAN I THAW IT ON MY OWN?
This is not a good idea. Attempting to thaw a pipe out on your own can only increase the pressure inside of it. A frozen pipe is actually more likely to burst during thawing. Therefore, the only thing you can do is give your professional plumbers a call. Fortunately, our staff is standing by and very well versed in how to handle piping problems of all kinds.
When you’re in need of pipe repair or repiping in Idaho Falls, ID, contact Advanced Home Services!