Single digit temp newb questions

Finally got the V cranked and running this morning. Came back inside while she was warming up, and found that mama had turned all the faucets off (which we had let drip all night.)

Kitchen "Hot side" was frozen. Bathroom "Cold side" was frozen. Mama claims the hot side in the kitchen was working this morning while she was making breakfast.

This has happened before. Both faucets are on exterior walls. When it happened years ago, I insulated all the pipes that were near exterior walls, running the insulation about 2 feet into the basement, and we haven't had the freezing problem since. I also, at the time, went down to the basement and un-froze the pipes with a hair dryer.

Well, listening to the "Home Improvement Experts" freak out on the radio all weekend, they've got me all freaked that un-freezing the pipes with a hair-dryer will cause them to berkeleying explode.

Any truth to this? Also, pipes in both bathrooms at the shop are frozen, and I'm freaked that they're going to bust.

If they are frozen to the point of water stoppage they may have already burst.I would work on the kitchen sink with the hairdryer NOW. EDIT: bathroom cold side also. The shop can wait ,the house notsomuch.

are the pipes actually inside the wall?

if so, and it can be done, i'd run them up through the floor of the cabinet from the basement and not through the exterior wall.

i assume the main comes in the basement somewhere and that you have a faucet or otherwise in the basement. shut off the main, open basement faucet, open upstairs faucet that isn't frozen if there is one to let the system drain, and go to town with your hair dryer/heat gun/tire fire.

If they're frozen, they're frozen. First step is to get them unfrozen. I'd put a hairdryer on 'em like right now. Monitor for leaks and fix as required.

Unfortunately, I'm at work. If the kid goes down for a nap, mama will be doing hair-dryer duty. If not, I'll be closing up shop early and hoping they're not completely fuxored frozen by the time I get there

As far as the hairdryer, I'm assuming the bursting issue is because the water expands and is trapped by ice on either side? I'd start the hair dryer a few feed or so inside living space so the water can drain is it thaws? I'm just throwing it out there because I've never had this experience.

No way a hair dryer causes a copper pipe to explode. Plastic, maybe , if you concentrated the airflow on one spot.

+1 for hitting it with the hairdryer ASAP. The freezing could potentially make the pipes crack but not explode...I have relatives who've suffered frozen pipes many times and nothing was ever damaged from it.

I used a hair dryer this morning on my kitchen hot side pipe. Leave the faucet open all the way as you thaw to allow for some flow as soon as possible.

Streetwiseguy wrote: No way a hair dryer causes a copper pipe to explode. Plastic, maybe , if you concentrated the airflow on one spot.

Never considered that; maybe these shiny happy people on the radio are talking about PVC(?)Mama hopped her prego ass on a ladder and got the kitchen sink flowing again. Tried to get the bathroom, but in her words "There's a berkeleying Festiva motor in the way." DOH! Trying to get the hell outta dodge so I can unfreeze pipe #2 ASAFP.

poopshovel wrote: but in her words "There's a berkeleying Festiva motor in the way."

i LOL'd.

What about sticking a heating pad in the area with the pipes? I've never tried it, but then it hardly ever gets this cold here.

Aint no hairdryer gonna BURST no pipe noway.liquid in Pipe freezes and forms solid,splitting pipe.Hairdryer melts solid back into liquid escaping from hole in pipe caused by previously solid liquid. You better know where the cutoff is upstream before applying heat or it will be the most comical tragedy you can stand.

Hair dryer is accepted method of fixing it up here... I imagine ATL is the same.

A drop light with a regular incandescent bulb is usually enough of a heater to keep the pipes from freezing.

Been there, done that...in the last week...with a crawlspace. Fortunately, no breaks this time.

This is why the house I'm renovating will have a meticulously designed plumbing supply system. The added element to the design will be that I can winterize the house in a few minutes. The procedure I foresee will go something like this:

Turn off supply valve via a lever in the bathroom that goes through floor to the crawlspace.

Open faucets inside.

Go outside and open the hose spigot (which will be the lowest supply plumbing in the house to drain all water from supply pipes.

Close all faucets, spigots, etc.

Drive to Colorado and go Skiing.

Pipes a flowin'. Faucets on steady stream instead of dripping. Above freezing temps tomorrow. Crisis averted. Thanks dudes & chicks!

Yay!

Kudos to Mrs. Poop for pitching in!

EastCoastMojo wrote: What about sticking a heating pad in the area with the pipes? I've never tried it, but then it hardly ever gets this cold here.

I use a heat lamp focused on the bad areas and make sure to plug up any openings that can cause a draft. We had pipes burst twice in the first three years of ownership, but after using the heat lamp and stopping the drafts we've been good since then (five years) knock on wood.

EastCoastMojo wrote: Yay! Kudos to Mrs. Poop for pitching in!

Fo real. She's a badass.

Its not pretty, but the shop where I worked in TX consistently froze pipes when it stayed below freezing for more than about 18 hours. I just busted the back out of the cabinet under the sink and kept the heat set to 50 overnight.

You could also wrap the pipes with that heat tape. Might be worth it for the once a year freeze. Just watch the weather report and plug it in when it looks cold.

The concern with hair dryers wasn't melting pipes, it was localized steam. The thought was that you can concentrate heat on the pipe enough that it causes the water to boil. Since it has nowhere to go, it bursts the pipe.

Of course, there are several things that debunk that myth. First, copper is incredibly good at conducting heat. The chances that you could localize a hot enough spot with copper pipe using a hair dryer is nearly impossible. PVC is unlikely to fail also, unless you get it so hot that you see melting, and even then its unlikely to burst unless you stupidly keep going

In reply to curtis73:

Yeah, I think the "Home fix-it" guys on the radio are keeping their advertisers in business. E36 M3 didn't make any sense to me either. And lol @ the new sig.