If you find yourself without water at one or more of your fixtures, you need to take action, quickly. The first thing you will want to do is see if you can locate the frozen pipe. It will most likely have frost around it and may show signs of stress in the form of a bulge, if it hasn’t already burst. When you find the frozen area, make sure you leave the faucet open that has been effected by the ice. This will ensure that the steam has someplace to go when you start heating it back up. Inspect the pipe to see if it has already split. If it has, turn off your water and call a plumber. Remember, if it is split, it is a ticking time bomb ready to cause extensive damage to your house. If it is split, it will not leak until it is thawed. If it appears to be ok, you can proceed to thaw it. Sticking a heater in the area, or using a hairdryer are the two best ways to accomplish this. You could also wrap it with heat tape. Make sure you don’t ever wrap the heat tape back onto itself though, as this could cause it to overheat and start a fire.
It is always a good idea to keep your garage door closed as much as possible in the winter. Although it is not advisable, some homes may have water lines in outside walls or even above the garage in the ceiling. If your garage door is down, you will cut down on the risk of one of your water lines freezing and making your home look like one of the pictures below.
Also, your hot water lines are in more jeopardy than your cold lines. Warm and hot water will freeze before cold water. How many of you believe that?? (You should)
