With the extremely cold weather blowing into our area over the next few days, the Doylestown Borough Water Department would like to share a few tips on how to prevent your water pipes from freezing. Frozen pipes can lead to costly plumbing repairs, high water bills, and homeowner insurance claims. The good news is that these situations can be avoided with a few simple steps.

1) Know your home.

  • Get familiar with your homes plumbing and HVAC systems. Check in your basement, crawl space, and garage to see if there are any water lines that are exposed. These spaces are not heated or insulated as well as the rest of the home, making them colder and more susceptible to having frozen pipes.

2) Keep it warm.

  • Insulate exposed water lines. You can find foam pipe insulation or electrical heat tape at any local hardware store. Even covering a pipe with blankets or an old comforter will help.
  • Turn up your home’s heat a little more than normal. Keep the cabinet doors under sinks open to allow for more heated air to flow into that space.
  • Use a portable space heater in your basement. Set it up in the area where your water line comes in through the foundation wall. Make sure to check manufacturers’ instructions on how to safely operate the heater.

3) Shut it off, shut it off.

  • Make sure your main water shut off valves are accessible and in proper working order. If your home still has the old gate valve style shut off valves, we recommend that you have your local plumber update them to modern ball valve style shut off valves.

4) Outside garden hose-bibs.

  • Shut off and drain outside garden hose bibs. When an outside hose-bib freezes it may burst. After everything thaws and the water begins to leak, and you may not notice it right away which will then lead to very high water and sewer bills.

5) Drip, drip, drip….

  • Allowing a faucet to continually drip at a slow rate will keep the water in the pipe moving and prevent freezing.

6) My pipes froze, now what?

  • First try to locate the area of pipe that is frozen. Then, use a hair blow dryer or heating pad to gradually thaw the pipe. Make sure to open a faucet to allow the thawing water to run. Have patience while thawing your line. It can take a good 15-20 minutes until you begin noticing a difference but eventually it will warm up and you will be good to go.
  • If your DIY attempts are unsuccessful, call your local plumber and have them investigate and troubleshoot further.

7) Neighborhood watch alert.

  • If you notice running water on the road or coming from a front yard, it may be a water main break or service line leak. Please call the Doylestown Borough Water Department at 215-345-4140 or the Police Department to report it.