What To Do When My Pipes Freeze

If the temperature outside your Clear Lake home is below freezing and you’ve turned on a faucet to hear just a gurgling noise, your pipes are likely frozen. Depending on how frozen they are, it might be possible to unfreeze the pipes yourself. However, to avoid expensive plumbing system damage, it’s crucial to do this very carefully. The expert team at Alliance Plumbing has put together this guide explaining what to do when your pipes freeze.

Prefer a local expert to check your home’s pipes instead? Alliance Plumbing is happy to help! Call us now at 281-488-0296 or send us a message online for a free, in-home estimate.  

Figure Out Which Pipes Are Frozen

Go around to each faucet or valve and try to turn on the water. No running water is the clearest sign that the surrounding pipes have frozen. If you notice a foul smell coming from the drain, that’s also a sign that the drain’s pipes are frozen. Keep these faucets on, even though there’s no water flowing currently. If the pipes thaw, you’ll notice immediately and make sure the pipes won’t refreeze.

For the faucets around your home that produce water (even a trickle), those pipes haven’t frozen solid yet. That’s great! To help keep those pipes from freezing, open the cabinet doors to expose the pipes to warmer air continuously. Even if your home doesn’t have heat, it’s warmer inside your house than inside the cabinets. Keep the tap open so that water is constantly trickling through the pipes.

Carefully Try To Thaw Pipes Using Safe Methods

Once you’ve identified precisely which pipes have frozen, you can try to thaw them yourself. The best way to thaw your pipes is to wait. Many homeowners crack or bust their lines when they try to rush the process. If waiting isn’t an option (as in the deep freeze that affected Clear Lake residents in February 2021), there are a few safe methods you can try.

Safe Methods To Thaw Pipes

The most important thing to remember when trying one of these methods is to go slowly and be patient so that you do not crack or bust the pipes in your home. Any of these options can cause stress to the pipes if you move too quickly.

• Hold a hairdryer above the frozen pipe
• Heat the surrounding air with a torch
• Wrap pipe in an electric heating pad

One method you should never try: Do not pour boiling water on or around your pipes; this will cause them to burst very easily.

Call Alliance if Pipes Are Not Thawing or if You Need Them Thawed Quickly

Alliance Plumbing has the resources and expertise to thaw pipes safely without causing stress to your plumbing system. We always provide free in-home plumbing estimates and, in most cases, offer same-day plumbing service.

Call us now at 281-488-0296 or contact us online, and we’ll send one of our expert plumbers to restore your home’s plumbing system as soon as possible.

Four Signs of a Burst Pipe

If you see or hear one of these signs, turn off the water supply:

• Murky water that smells like rotten eggs
• Inconsistent water pressure
• Dripping noises within walls
• Watermarks or soft patches on drywall

If You Have Busted Pipes, Call Alliance Immediately

A burst pipe needs to be handled only by a plumbing professional who has the knowledge and resources to fix the problem quickly and safely. Alliance Plumbing can get to your Clear Lake home fast, explain all of your options, and provide a free, in-home estimate to repair your plumbing system.

Call us at 281-488-0296. Our dedicated customer service team will dispatch the best Alliance Plumbing expert to solve the issue. 

Trust Alliance for Five-Star Plumbing Repair in the Clear Lake Area

Alliance Plumbing has a reputation among Clear Lake residents as the plumbing company you can trust to arrive quickly, explain what needs to be done, give a price quote, and provide five-star service to resolve the issue. We hire the best local plumbers and customer service team to ensure that your experience is nothing less than top-rated.

Call Alliance Plumbing today at 281-488-0296 or contact us online to schedule an appointment for a free in-home estimate!