LONGVIEW, Texas (East Texas News) – With subfreezing temperatures spanning several days, your home’s water pipes can freeze. Are there any warning signs? And what happens to your house if the pipes freeze?
Lori Marten, manager of the Ledbetter Plumbing office in Longview, says that during a deep freeze she gets hundreds of calls. If frozen pipes burst, here is what to expect:
“A very high bill. A very high bill. Because it isn’t cheap to crawl under the house if you have a pier-and-beam structure, or to break through the floor with a pneumatic hammer,” Marten said.
During a prolonged freeze, she recommends letting all taps drip, both hot and cold. But if a pipe does freeze, there is a warning sign.
“If you notice you have no water pressure, that means the pipes are frozen. Go to the main shutoff valve at the water meter and turn it off. If you can’t shut it off yourself, the city will do it for you,” Marten said.
Ledbetter plumber Danny Dicken says you might not see leaks right away, but once the pipes thaw:
“I’ve seen water come out through the wall. Running down the wall and across the floor,” Dicken said.
He says this can cause:
“A lot of damage. It can ruin the floors and the walls,” Dicken said.
He notes that most of the time plumbers can’t start work until:
“Restoration specialists arrive, install fans and vacuum up all the water. It’s a process,” Dickens said.
After that, a plumber can locate the leak.
“Cut the wall, cut the copper pipe, pull it out. Solder the pieces, the connections and so on,” Dickens said.
If the leak is underneath the foundation, that’s when a pneumatic hammer might be used, which increases the cost. Often, plumbers install water lines in the attic to avoid having to run them through walls again.
But plumbers say this is preventable.
“Let the water run,” Marten said.
Marten tells us that repairing broken water pipes can cost thousands of dollars.
