Winter Months – Winterize Plumbing
Every winter, many homeowners experience frozen water pipes and costly repairs. By taking a few simple precautions, many of these issues can be avoided.
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Locate your master shutoff
Know where you master shutoff is at your water meter. This will turn off your supply to the entire building. Other internal isolation valves are installed to isolate items such as your hot water tank, washer machine, kitchen, baths, etc. Note – valve manufactures recommend valves be periodically exercised and properly maintained.
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Maintain heat and meter manifold
Your service line should enter at the meter manifold. It is imperative that this area has sufficient heat to prevent freezing. Pay particular attention to the foundation wall and along the top near the header plate. Most concrete blocks are hollow in construction and if not properly insulated even a small draft can result in a frozen water line. Seal off access doors, cracks, and broken windows. Wind chill factors can easily freeze exposed water pipes. Meter pit sets must also be protected with a suitable metal lid and insulated per West View Water Authority code. Specifications are available upon request.
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Outdoor faucets
Before winter turn off the water supply from the inside and isolate to the faucet. Disconnect the hose and allow the water to drain from the pipe. It is possible that an
overnight freeze could burst your faucet or the pipe it is connected to.
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Insulate pipes or faucets
In any unheated area insulate pipes or faucets. If you have pipelines in an unheated crawl space or cold garage, wrap the water pipes before the temperature drops below freezing. Pay particular attention to any plumbing, sinks and/or faucets that are associated with an outside wall. During cold weather open the cabinet or vanity door to
allow warm air to circulate. Any questions regarding internal plumbing please contact your local plumber or contractor.
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Frozen lines
Using a simple hair dryer can sometimes help frozen pipe lines to be thawed. Never use a torch or open flame. Care should be taken when thawing because the pipe may already be broken and once thawed, you will need to control the water. We recommend you consult with your plumber before you start any emergency work.
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Meter pits
We strongly advise all of our customers who have a water meter pit to make sure that the pit is properly insulated to protect the meter from freezing. We also highly recommend that any debris or high snow be removed from the pit lid and surrounding area to insure that the Automatic Meter Reading system can communicate with the water meter. Please call our Customer Service Department if you have any questions.
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Fire hydrants
West View Water Authority is supporting local municipalities and fire departments by asking our customers who may have a fire hydrant on their property in the public right
of way to remove the snow so it may be easily located in the event of an emergency.
