When the first winter weather arrives with sub-zero temperatures, plumbers know that there are going to be hundreds of plumbing service calls just to thaw out frozen water pipes.
There are several ways to thaw out those frozen pipes; some are quite safe, while others have caused unnecessary bathroom repairs, fires and financial loss.
This plumbing repair guide will present a few pointers for safely thawing out frozen water pipes in your home.
Water pipes are subject to freezing whenever they are unnecessarily exposed to sub-zero temperatures.
The most likely place to locate an uninsulated water pipe is just about anywhere in a house or apartment building.
However, those that are located nearby an exterior wall are more prone to freezing up.
Because these are usually unheated spaces, the water pipes installed there go ignored until the freeze and burst.
If not repaired right away, flooding and damage to the immediate area and eventually the entire room will result.
Bathroom repairs, always quite expensive, must be made as soon as possible to prevent more serious damage.
Thawing out frozen water pipes on your own isn't impossible, but there is one important safety consideration.
Using an open flame from any source is strongly not recommended.
Open flames cause fires, and house fires in sub-zero weather are definitely a most unpleasant thing.
House fires caused by the improper use of an open flame to thaw a frozen water pipe are completely preventable.
A good, and safe way to thaw a frozen water pipe is to use radiant heat.
Two sources of radiant heat are hand-held blow dryers and radiant space heaters.
You can safely fix the problem by turning one of these devices on at the highest temperature setting and directing it toward the frozen pipe.
Unless the water pipe has burst, it can be thawed out quickly and safely using this technique.
Take precautions to prevent further freezing up again by adding insulation and caulk wherever important at this point.
Try to localize where the cold air is entering your home and plug it up using expanding insulating foam, fiberglass insulation, or caulk, depending upon the size and depth of the hole or crack.
Filling cracks and holes in the wall is easily accomplished with aerosol insulating foam that expands when it comes into contact with air.
If you are going to use this product, you should purchase the right kind of foam for your particular problem.
The store's sales persons should be able to help you decide which type of foam to buy in order to fix your problem.
You should wear a pair of rubber or latex painter's gloves when applying it, because it will stick to your hands if you do not protect them.
The old saw about "an ounce of prevention being worth an pound of cure" applies well here.
Taking a little time to make sure that your home or apartment is properly insulated, has all the cracks and crevices plugged up, and all the exposed sections of water pipe are insulated.
Doing so will save you quite a bit a misery when the temperatures are at their lowest.
Sometimes, water pipes will freeze up when you don't think they should.
Whatever the reason, the safest way to thaw out frozen water pipes is by using a radiant heat source.