Beware, in very cold weather.....frozen water pipes

[oceanloverOH]

I ran across the following article and wanted to share it because many of us are dealing with a deep freeze right now!

Frozen Water Pipes
Beware the unexpected cold snap or deep freeze. Frozen water pipes are a serious risk during very cold winter weather. When water freezes in a pipe it expands and can exert pressure over 2,000 pounds per square inch. This pressure is enough to rupture most any pipe filled with water which provides no place for the ice to expand. When the pipe bursts it will spill several hundred gallons of water per hour, and that equates to thousands of dollars of damage to your home. Sad when you consider how easy it is to prevent a frozen water pipe.

Risky Locations
Pipes are most susceptible to freezing when located:
•In an outside wall;
•Under a sink on an outside wall;
•In an unheated crawlspace.

Frozen But Not Burst?
Then it's time to thaw! In the situation where your pipe is frozen but not yet ruptured, you need to promptly thaw it out. There are a few thawing techniques we'll review depending on where the frozen pipe is located. When pipes are frozen you turn the faucet on and no water comes out or comes out in a trickle. As soon as you realize a pipe is frozen you need to take immediate action.
•Open the faucet supplied by the frozen pipe even if you do not yet know where it is frozen.
•Identify the frozen water supply pipe and find the location of the blockage.
•Follow the pipe back from the faucet to where it runs through cold areas such as an exterior wall, unheated crawl space or in some cases an unheated basement if the pipe is near an outside wall.
•Often the frozen area of the pipe will be frosted or have ice on it. If the situation is getting critical the pipe may be slightly bulged or look slightly fissured.

NOTE: While working on thawing the pipe, if it bursts before it is thawed, then shut off the water at the water main immediately!

http://homerepair.about.com/od/plumbingrepair/ss/thaw_frzn_pipe_3.htm

[fyrenza]

deja vu, all over, again ...

Was one of the "things" to leave your water running a small stream, but with a MIX of hot and cold,
to protect your hot water heater, also?

******

We probably need to know plumbing people,

and I did know one, but he turned into an asshat,

and now I have to hate him.

Sometimes? Life sux.

[fyrenza]

... and then, your freakin' pipes burst, and you're all like : WOE is me!

^that^ would actually be the "life" sucking part.

[Peter1469]

My tenant better not have let my pipes freeze.....

Here at the apartment, I was more concerned with me freezing. These damn large windows (single pane) look nice in the summer, but don't help much when it gets this cold. 4 blankets on the bed, and the sheets were still freezing cold.....

And this time last year the ex-W wanted me to replace the windows and sliding glass doors at the condo- all the while knowing that she was planning on moving to Brussels.... But at least my tenant doesn't have article air coming through those windows.... :sad:

[patrickt]

WARNING: Frozen pipes don't always show until they thaw. I was sitting and reading one warm spring day when a pipe to a bathroom never used in the based thawed. I heard a roaring sound and when I went to investigate saw nothing. That's because the water was busy working it's way through the drywall. Then, in a wet, soggy crash, it came through.

[Max Rockatansky]

deja vu, all over, again ...

Was one of the "things" to leave your water running a small stream, but with a MIX of hot and cold,
to protect your hot water heater, also?

******

We probably need to know plumbing people,

and I did know one, but he turned into an asshat,

and now I have to hate him.

Sometimes? Life sux.

The water heater is inside, so that shouldn't be a problem. I have a well which is on the South side of the house. I run the kitchen faucet which is on the North side. Cold water only. I also have a small heater in the well house set to the minimum heat setting.

The good news on all of this cold weather is that it'll knock down the bugs for this Spring/Summer.

[countryboy]

deja vu, all over, again ...

Was one of the "things" to leave your water running a small stream, but with a MIX of hot and cold,
to protect your hot water heater, also?

******

We probably need to know plumbing people,

and I did know one, but he turned into an asshat,

and now I have to hate him.

Sometimes? Life sux.
See, I told my wife there was a good reason I don't fix the leaky faucets. :D And she thinks I'm just lazy. :rolleyes:

[waltky]

Granny says ever'body talks `bout the weather - but nobody does much about it...
http://www.politicalwrinkles.com/images/smilies/eek.gif
Extreme weather 'could kill up to 100,000 a year' in Europe by 2100
Sat, 05 Aug 2017 - Weather-related deaths will spike by 2100 if nothing is done to curb climate change, scientists say.


Extreme weather could kill up to 152,000 people each year in Europe by 2100 if nothing is done to curb the effects of climate change, scientists say. The number is 50 times more deaths than reported now, the study in The Lancet Planetary Health journal said. Heat waves would cause 99% of all weather-related deaths, it added, with southern Europe being worst affected. Experts said the journal's findings were worrying.


https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/624/cpsprodpb/84A9/production/_97216933_c9417c98-5bfc-4b7e-9a0f-62c68b01599f.jpg
Flooding near the Bavarian village of Deggendorf in southern Germany in 2013

If nothing is done to cut greenhouse gas emissions and to improve policies to reduce the impact against extreme weather events, the study by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre says:

* Deaths caused by extreme weather could rise from 3,000 a year between 1981 and 2010 to 152,000 between 2071 and 2100
* Two in three people in Europe will be affected by disasters by 2100, against a rate of one in 20 at the start of the century
* There will be a substantial rise in deaths from coastal flooding, from six victims a year at the start of the century to 233 a year by the end of it


https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/624/cpsprodpb/D39B/production/_97217145_fc52c12a-ad74-437a-b122-24fbf06c8b8c.jpg
Fire rages through an area of woodland in Artigues in south-eastern France

The research analysed the effects of the seven most dangerous types of weather-related events - heat waves, cold snaps, wildfires, droughts, river and coastal floods and windstorms - in the 28 EU countries as well as Switzerland, Norway and Iceland. The team looked at disaster records from 1981 to 2010 to estimate population vulnerability, and combined this information with predictions of how climate change might progress and how populations might increase and migrate. "Climate change is one of the biggest global threats to human health of the 21st century, and its peril to society will be increasingly connected to weather-driven hazards," said Giovanni Forzieri, one of the authors of the study. "Unless global warming is curbed as a matter of urgency and appropriate measures are taken, about 350 million Europeans could be exposed to harmful climate extremes on an annual basis by the end of the century."


https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/624/cpsprodpb/121BB/production/_97217147_b62b6015-e71b-4f16-9d01-f2f904900d25.jpg
The frozen waterside promenade at Lake Geneva in Versoix

Paul Wilkinson, a professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, who was not involved in the study, said the findings were "yet another reminder of the exposures to extreme weather and possible human impacts that might occur if emissions of greenhouse gases continue unabated. "It adds further weight to the powerful argument for accelerating mitigation actions to protect population health."

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-40835663

See also:

Parts of Europe struck by strongest heatwave of the summer
Saturday 5th August, 2017 - Several part of Europe are experiencing the most extreme heatwave in more than a decade.


With temperatures hitting 44C, several countries in the region have issued health warnings as the record-breaking weather conditions continue to affect many parts of the continent. While the heatwave has left some regions facing the threat of severe drought, in other parts it has sparked wildfires and in Italy and dozens of towns and cities are on the health ministry's maximum heat alert. In parts of Europe - where temperatures have reached potentially dangerous levels - health warnings are in place.

Until Friday, authorities in 11 southern and central European countries had warned residents and tourists to take precautions amid the brutal heatwave that has been nicknamed Lucifer. As scientists warned that worse was still to come, the European forecasters’ network, Meteoalarm said that authorities in countries including Italy, Switzerland, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Bosnia, Croatia and Serbia were on red alert, and swaths of southern Spain and France are on amber. In many places, temperatures hit or exceeded 40C and the heatwave became the region’s most sustained since 2003.


http://cdn.bignewsnetwork.com/cus1501910662.jpg

Many countries put emergency services on standby and people have been asked to “remain vigilant,” stay indoors, avoid long journeys, drink enough fluids and listen for emergency advice. So far, two deaths from the heat have been reported - one in Romania and another in Poland. Many people have suffered from sunstroke and other heat-related conditions. Overall, Italy and the Balkans are the most severely affected, even though areas as far north as southern Poland are also exposed to unusually high temperatures. According to authorities in Italy - where temperatures are 10C higher than the average for this time of the year - hospitalisation rate currently stood at 15 percent above normal and people in affected regions were asked only to travel if their journey was essential.

Polish officials meanwhile warned of possible infrastructure failures. In Albania on Friday, the country's armed forces joined hundreds of firefighters to battle dozens of forest fires as temperatures reached 40C. Albania has sought emergency assistance from the European Union to help prevent the wildfires spreading near the capital, Tirana. South-east France meanwhile will continue to swelter, with night-time temperatures above 25C in some parts, and in Spain, weather warnings are in place across Mallorca, Minorca, Catalonia, Ibiza and Malaga. Temperatures are also above normal in parts of Greece, Croatia and Hungary. Meanwhile, the high temperatures have also led to massive frustration among holidaymakers due to the long delays at airports.

http://www.bignewsnetwork.com/news/254238193/parts-of-europe-struck-by-strongest-heatwave-of-the-summer