We know you don’t want to think about winter weather yet. It’s still officially summer! But fall arrives in only a few weeks. It’s time to make special home preparations for the change in seasons. The earlier you do winter prep, the easier it’ll be—and the lower the chance of the first cold snap of the season catching you off guard.
We have a few fall tips for preparing your household’s plumbing.
Disconnect hoses
This is always step one, because leaving the hoses attached to their bibs during freezing weather is destructive. The water in the hoses will freeze in cold weather, and the freeze will go right into the pipes in the house! To protect the hose, we recommend you coil it up and store it indoors.
Insulate hose bibs
These bibs are in danger of cracking even without hoses connected to them. A foam faucet cover will prevent the bib from freezing. You can purchase these at most home improvement stores, and they’re a worthwhile investment to avoid busted hose bibs.
Adjust water heater temperature
People often don’t realize that their water heater does more work in winter. This is because the water entering the tank is colder, and the unit must expend more energy to heat it. If you turned down the aquastat on the water heater during the summer to help save money (a good plan), turn it back up before winter. The water in the tank should be at least 120°F.
Schedule water heater maintenance if you haven’t yet
A water heater needs a professional inspection and maintenance visit once a year. If you have not done this yet, fall is one of the best times to have it done. A professional plumber will flush the tank to remove sediment and test the pressure relief valve to make sure the water heater is ready for the extra work of winter.
Insulate exposed piping
Winter brings the danger of the dreaded pipe freeze and its horrid consequences, pipe bursting. The pipes in the walls and ceilings of your house aren’t in much danger because they’ll receive heat from inside the rooms. But exposed pipes in places like the basement need extra protection. There are different options to insulate exposed pipes, such as sleeves or heat tapes. When in doubt, speak to one of our plumbers for professional pipe-freezing prevention help.
Test sump pump and clean sump pit
Flooding can threaten your home during fall, early winter, and spring. If you have a sump pump to protect against this, check to ensure it’s working and doesn’t need repairs. First, clean out the sump pit of any debris. Then turn the pump on and pour a bucket of water slowly into the sump to see if the pump activates and drains the water. If something is not right, call for repairs or a sump pump replacement.
Tuckers is where you can find the ideal Frederick, MD, plumber for you. Trust us to help you winterize your plumbing and come to your rescue when you need plumbing repairs.
Call us and we’ll exceed your expectations. Tuckers Air Conditioning, Heating & Plumbing serves Washington D.C., Montgomery, and Frederick Counties.