How to Stop Your Pipes Freezing Through a New York Winter
The pipe that freezes is almost never a surprise. It is the same run every winter.
Which pipes freeze
Freezing happens where a water line runs through space that is not heated: exterior walls, unheated crawlspaces, attics, garages, and the short run out to an exterior spigot. Kitchen and bathroom sinks on an outside wall are the classic case, because the cabinet under the sink blocks the room's heat from reaching the pipe.
Wind matters more than temperature. A run behind an exterior wall with a gap in the siding or a vent nearby will freeze at temperatures that leave a sheltered pipe untouched. This is why the same pipe freezes every year while the rest of the house is fine.
Before the cold arrives
Disconnect garden hoses in autumn and shut off the interior valve feeding each exterior spigot, then open the spigot to drain the line. A hose left attached traps water in the spigot and that is one of the most common winter bursts there is.
Insulate exposed runs in the basement, crawlspace and garage with pipe sleeve. It is inexpensive and it works. For a run that freezes every year despite insulation, heat cable is the reliable answer.
Air-seal the gaps. Cold air getting into a wall cavity or a rim joist is usually doing more damage than the insulation is preventing. Sealing the hole where a pipe passes through an exterior wall is often the single most effective thing you can do.
During a hard freeze
Keep the heat on in every room that contains plumbing, including rooms you do not use. Setting the thermostat back to save money during a deep cold snap is a false economy when a burst pipe costs thousands.
Open the cabinet doors under sinks on exterior walls so room air reaches the pipes. Let a vulnerable faucet run a slow trickle. Moving water and the pressure relief that a slightly open tap provides both reduce the risk of a split.
If you are leaving a property empty, do not drop the heat below about fifty-five degrees. If it will be empty for a long stretch, having the system properly drained down is the safer option.
If a pipe has already frozen
The sign is no water, or a thin trickle, from one or two fixtures while the rest of the house is normal. Open the affected tap so that meltwater has somewhere to go and pressure can escape as the ice releases.
Apply gentle heat to the accessible section, working from the tap end back toward the frozen part. A hair dryer or a space heater at a safe distance is appropriate. Never use a torch, a propane heater or any open flame on a pipe. House fires started this way are a genuinely common winter callout for fire departments.
Know where your main shut-off is before you start, and have a hand on it. A frozen pipe often splits while frozen, and the leak appears the moment the ice clears.
Why bursts show up during the thaw
Ice expands as it forms and the pressure it creates between the ice plug and a closed tap is what splits the pipe. The split is already there while everything is frozen, but no water is moving, so nothing shows.
When the thaw comes, the water starts flowing through the split and into the wall. This is why the busiest day for burst pipe calls is not the coldest day of the year, it is the first mild day after it.
Common questions
At what temperature do pipes freeze?
Exposed pipes start to be at risk when the outside temperature drops to around twenty degrees Fahrenheit, sooner in wind or where a pipe sits in an unheated cavity.
Should I really leave a tap dripping?
For a run that has frozen before, yes, during a hard freeze. A slow trickle from the fixture furthest along the vulnerable run is the standard advice and costs very little water.
What if I cannot find the frozen section?
Call rather than guessing. Opening the wrong wall is expensive, and applying heat to a pipe you cannot see is how people start fires.
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