How To Unfreeze Pipes

This past week Western North Carolina experienced record breaking cold with temp down in the single digits. Even under the best circumstances and despite any preventative measures you may take, sometimes pipes will freeze. If the weather outside your home is really cold and you turn on a faucet and only a small amount of water comes out, you may have a frozen pipe.

If this happens, we recommend you call ServiceMaster of Hendersonville ASAP. However, if you want to investigate, here are a few things you can do first.

Start by locating any areas in the home where you suspect there is a frozen pipe – chances are, you may have multiple frozen pipes. Choose one location and open the faucet, let water trickle out. At the same time, locate the supplying pipe and apply a small amount of heat to it. Heating pads and hair dryers are a couple good options.

Stay away from high heat devices or those that require an open flame, such as blowtorches or gas operated (propane, kerosene, etc) heaters. In addition, be sure to remove any hazardous and flammable chemicals or materials from the area as well.

Once full water pressure is returned to the area, move on to the next frozen pipe, if applicable, and repeat the process.