Winter is coming! How to prevent water damages from cold.

1/20/2020 (Permalink)

This is the interior wall behind a frozen hose bib in Advance North Carolina

Its that time of year again.  We are approaching the middle of January and the forecasted temperatures are creeping lower and lower.  That means we need to protect ourselves from the effects of freezing temperatures around your Advance and Bermuda Run, North Carolina homes.  Make sure that all your water hoses on the exterior of your home are unscrewed from the spigot.  Many people mistakenly believe that their hose bib will protect them from frozen pipes.  However, if you leave your hose attached to your spigot, the water inside the hose will freeze and expand into your hose bib where the resulting pressure will cause a split in the pipe.  May people will not discover that they have this problem until they turn on the spigot in the spring time to water the flowers of wash the car.  The split in the pipe occurs inside the wall in front of the hose bib cut off and is not evident until the water is turned on again and it begins to flood the wall cavity.  We can prevent this problem simply by unscrewing our hoses from the spigot.  Make sure that if you are traveling or you maintain a vacation home that your water is turned off at the supply to prevent an uninterrupted leak in your absence.  You may even consider draining your water lines and hot water tank until you return.  Place a cup full of RV antifreeze in all sink/tub drains and toilets to prevent the water left in the bowls an p-traps from freezing.  Your best defense against freezing pipes and the resulting damage is a good offense.  If you experience water damage this winter or any other time of the year call SERVPRO of Davie and Yadkin Counties for your mitigation needs.