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-   -   Insulating Pipes? (https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/showthread.php?t=49336)

  • Dec 18, 2006, 04:37 PM
    wwotr
    Insulating Pipes??
    My wife and I recently moved to the Foothills at about 3000' elevation.
    We get a "dusting" of snow but not a lot, but the temps are MUCH colder here, than in the Valley.
    Our house is a small 825 SQ FT. All the exposed water pipes are insulated with foam wrap.
    All the copper pipe underneath the house s not wrapped. Last night it got down to 23 degrees.
    I woke up and took a shower and everything as far as water flow/pressure was normal.
    About 2 hours later, I flushed the toilet and heard what sounded like a "Crushed Ice" sound. I turned on the bathroom faucets and got a spuratic water (like air in the line).
    Now I noticed that after my shower, a neighbor that backs up to me, had what looks like a pipe that froze and ruptured overnight.
    Could this have been the cause of our problems?
    The water in our house is running fine now. My wife is telling me to get under the house and wrap the pipes. I'm saying it was a flluke with the neighbors pipe and that was the cause. We've had temps in the mid 20's before with no problems.
    Questions/Opinions welcome.

    Roger
  • Dec 18, 2006, 06:01 PM
    dgvgp
    When u say underneath the house do you have a basement or a crawl space. To insulate the pipes underneath the house is a good idea especially if they are hot water pipes even in a heated basement. U can use foam pipe wrap (and and then cover them with pink insulation if they are underneath the house or in a crawl space; don't put exposed insulation inside the house) Winter is almost over and the easiest solution for now is to leave the bathroom or kitchen tap lightly dripping, that way water is always running or moving within the pipes giving less of a chance to freeze the water with in the pipes. I live where the temperatures get below 40 degrees and that's the way we did it. Now the best way, a bit expensive, is spray insulation foam, blue gives a true insulation to whatever is applied to. Great for garages, ceilings, and walls, but that's going a bit overkill as temperature upthere goes only into the mid 20's.
  • Dec 18, 2006, 06:07 PM
    wwotr
    The pipes are under the house and it has crawl space acsess.
    It is on a hillside so the space underneath goes from about 2' at the front of the house and sloapes down to about 5' in the rear.
    Its not that hard to get acsess underneath.
    I just didn't want to buy 100' of foan insulation if I didn't have to.
    :D
    Roger
  • Dec 18, 2006, 07:28 PM
    labman
    How old is this place? If it is fairly new, I would assume it hasn't gone through an unusually cold snap. I think Lowe's and HD have 8' lengths for about a buck or better stuff for more like 3 bucks. A dozen of the good stuff would be less than $40.

    Frozen pipes and worrying about frozen pipes is a pain. Do it and relax.

    How old are you and how long do you expect to be in the house? Better now than 20 years from now after a burst pipe.
  • Dec 18, 2006, 08:01 PM
    wwotr
    Labman,
    I assume the house has seen plenty of cold snaps.
    It was built in 1965, but the entire house was "flipped" as far as pipes, electrical, foundation, appliances, marble counter tops, cupboards,Hardwood Flooring,new deck, new paint etc...
    I'm almost 50, and I hope to be staying here at LEAST 10 years, if not the rest of my life.
    I think a trip to the Hardware store is in order!
    Roger

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