How to keep your pipes from freezing

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — When Arctic air moves into our region, the cold has an opportunity to freeze pipes within your home. With that concern, we spoke to a local plumber to help you prevent that.

Matt Codd, Plumbing Service Manager at Ryan, said “Make sure that if you have any openings in the house, that they are closed and sealed off. No cold air getting into the basement to where your piping is. If your house is known to have freezing issues in the past, make sure you take preventative action to run your faucet, whatever it may be. And make sure your hose bibs are disconnected.”

Another vital thing you can do is keep the heat on. Matt mentioned, “Keep the heat turned on. If the water lines you know are running in the outside wall, which we see a lot here in Rochester, leave the water running. A slow drip, a slow steady drip. That will prevent any freezing of occurring within those lines. Keep the cabinet doors open, especially if you know this has happened in the past, it’ll prevent the water lines from freezing.”

However, in the case of an emergency shut the water off. “Locate your main water shut off, which is located right in the basement near your foundation wall. Turn it off immediately. That’s going to shut off the entire house. If you don’t know where any other isolated valves may be in the house. With something outside that you might see, just call Monroe County Water Authority or city of water right away and let them know something is going on because it could affect you ultimately as well,” exclaimed Matt.

The cold won’t last too long across our region but make sure you and your family are protected with another shot of arctic air.