Forecasts are freezing. 

Forecasts are calling for freezing temperatures in the upcoming days.  We have some tips to help you prepare and keep your home safe during a freeze. 

 

 Water and Irrigation

  • Wrap/cover/protect the main water line coming into the house.  

  • Do the same for your exterior hose bibs

    • Or if your exterior hose bibs are plumbed separate from the house, turn off the water to them and open the hose bibs to drain the water out of them.  The hose bib located where the main water line comes into the house is not plumbed separate and will still need to be wrapped and protected.

    • Disconnect and drain outdoor hoses.

  • Irrigation - drain the water out of the vacuum breaker.  Kyle explains how in this video.  This is the most common device to freeze in our winter conditions.

    • Shut off backflow valve by turning the handles perpendicular to pipe.

    • Open the release valve by turning the release screw located on the backflow preventer clockwise with a flathead screwdriver.

    • Wait for water to come out of the release valve to partially drain the system.

    • Cover entire assembly with a towel to prevent freezing.

  • You can run the irrigation zones after the water supply has been turned off to drain some additional water out of the lines.



  • If a pipe does burst, please follow these steps

    • Shut off the water main to your home

    • Notify your insurance company and follow their instructions for pipe repair

    • If authorized by your insurance company, notify the plumber that plumbed your home to repair the burst pipe.

 

 

Water Treatment Systems

  • If your unit is located outside, put a heavy blanket or tarp over the unit using heavy duty tape, clamps, or zip ties to secure it. 

  • Wrap/cover/protect pipes coming to and from the unit.

 

Pools

  • Most importantly, wrap/cover/protect your fill line valves.  These are the most common pool devices to freeze in our winter conditions.  If you have a separate irrigation meter or the hose bibs are plumbed separately, you can just turn off the water supply and drain the line.  

  • For the pool system (pumps and plumbing), if you have an Aqualink or Pentair computer control system, it comes with freeze protection which you can set up in your programming menu.  The filter pump is defaulted to freeze protect but you can select other devices to do the same.  If you are not comfortable or unsure of how to do this then you can simply turn on all your pumps (pool pump, cleaner pump, waterfall pump, etc.) prior to the temperatures getting below freezing.

  • If you lose power for an extended amount of time and you think that the water in your pipes may have frozen, turn off all breakers to the pool equipment. This will stop the pool from automatically turning back on when the power is restored. If you lose power and you are able to cover your equipment with blankets, that will help too.

 

 
 
 

Garages

  • Pipes running through the ceiling of your garage may be outside of the protection of your foam insulation.  We recommend not opening your garage door to retain the warmer air inside the garage.

 

Plants

·       Drought-stressed plants are more susceptible to cold damage, so watering plants a few days in advance is beneficial.  Giving a thorough soaking the day before the freezing night can help too. 

·       Covering plants can act like insulation, keeping warm air from the ground around the plant.  This may not be as effective this week with the very high winds expected.  Do extra measures to secure the coverings from lifting up or blowing away.




 
Trinity Estate Homes