Will Frozen Pipes Thaw on Their Own?

If your pipes are frozen, you shouldn’t wait for them to thaw on their own. If you do let them thaw on their own, it could lead to bursting pipes and severe water damage in your home or business.

Here are some steps to take to thaw your pipes if they are frozen:

1. Turn the Water Off
   If your pipes are frozen, the first step is to turn the water supply off. Turning your water supply off ensures that water is not building up behind a frozen area, which could cause the pipe to burst.
2. Find the Frozen Pipe
   Locate the frozen pipe that you are looking to thaw and make sure you are prepared to clean up any leaks that may occur. This includes having towels, a mop and a bucket handy. Frozen pipes can be in your basement, outside walls, under a sink or in a crawl space.
3. Apply Heat to Frozen Pipes
   Once you have turned the water off and found the frozen pipe, it’s time to defrost and thaw the pipe yourself. You can do this with a space heater, hair dryer, heat lamp or other safe heating solution like heat tape or heating pad. Do not use any heating items like a blowtorch or propane torch – that can be a fire or carbon monoxide hazard.

The best time to prepare for frozen pipes is before they have the risk of freezing. Consider these preventive steps before and throughout the winter season to keep your home and pipes safe:

• Insulate Your Pipes
  You can prevent frozen pipes by insulating them, especially ones in unheated areas of your home, like the garage, attic, basement, crawl space and under your kitchen and bathroom cabinets. You can insulate the pipes using pipe sleeves, heat tape or heat cable.
• Keep Your Garage Closed
  As an unheated space in your home, the garage is often a place where pipes can freeze. By keeping your garage closed, you can keep in the heat necessary to make sure your pipes don’t freeze.
• Open Kitchen and Bathroom Cabinets
  It’s difficult for heat to reach the pipes behind your kitchen and bathroom cabinets. By keeping your cabinets open, pipes can stay warm.
• Let Your Faucet Drip
  On cold nights, let your faucet slowly drip cold water. This keeps the water in your pipes moving, which helps prevent them from freezing and bursting.
• Set Your Temperature Appropriately
  Leaving home for the day? Going out of town for a week? Keep your thermostat set to a constant temperature no lower than 55 to avoid frozen pipes, as unattended frozen pipes could lead to a home flooding situation.

If your pipes freeze, trust a local professional with pipe repair services. This will prevent more water from flooding your home and any further damage, such as mold, that can develop over time. Simply turn off your main water valve and contact a professional plumber near you, such as fellow Neighborly® brand Mr. Rooter® Plumbing, for 24/7 plumbing repair services.

In need of immediate water damage restoration services? Rainbow Restoration is here to help with 24/7 emergency service. Call us or submit our request an appointment online to get started.