It’s the time of year to start preparing your house and its exterior for the cold weather that’s coming. For those living in areas with cold winters, one of the important things to do is prepare your outdoor faucets for the season.
Step 1. Locate All Of Your Outdoor Faucets
The first thing you need to do is locate all of the outdoor faucets around your home’s exterior. This includes any spigots in the yard, as well as any faucets attached to rain barrels or other water sources. You will want to drain and remove any hoses that are connected to these faucets.
You should also check and clean your gutters of debris so that they don’t overflow when temperatures drop. If you’re expecting some extremely cold weather, you should also make sure that your home’s pipes are insulated to prevent them from freezing. If they don’t have insulation, you can wrap them with foam insulation or put heat tape on them.
Step 2. Locate the Shutoff Valve for the Outdoor Faucets
Now that you’ve located the main valve, you’ll need to locate the shutoff valve for each faucet. This can be done by turning off the main water supply and then turning off each faucet one at a time.
If you don’t know where they are, or if they’re difficult to access, contact a plumber who can help guide you through the process of shutting down your outdoor plumbing system.
Step 3: Shut off the Valves and Drain the Water
Turn off the shutoff valves for each outdoor faucet and allow the water to drain out. If you don’t have a shutoff valve for each faucet, you’ll need to turn off the main water supply and then turn off each faucet one at a time.
Next, go outside and open the faucets to allow the water to drain out. Inspect the fixtures for damage once all the water has drained out. If you see any cracks in the pipes or leaks around them, this means that they need to be repaired before using them again.
Return inside to the shutoff valve and remove the bleeder cap (as seen above) to drain any remaining water from the inside of your pipes and to prevent freezing in colder weather conditions. This is extremely important! If you miss this step, you risk your outdoor faucet and pipes freezing over during the winter leading to damage and costly repairs later on.
Make sure you have a bucket or bucket with a drain plug when doing this so that you can catch all of your draining water! Once it is all drained, replace the cap and close up those outside faucets again – repeat this process for each outdoor faucet if necessary.
Step 4: Invest in Maintenance and Outdoor Faucet Covers or Frost-Free Outdoor Faucets
If you don’t want to worry about your outdoor faucet freezing over during the winter, consider investing in maintenance and outdoor faucet covers.These are inexpensive and easy to install. If you already have an outdoor faucet that doesn’t freeze over or that has a frost-free feature built-in, then skip this step.
Frost-free outdoor faucets help ensure that you have access to your outdoor faucets when you need them. So, if you plan on spending most of your time indoors over the winter and don’t want to worry about frozen or corroded pipes, it’s worth investing in frost-free outdoor faucets. This will also save money on repairs because your pipes won’t freeze and crack as easily during colder weather.
Cold temperatures can be very tough on your outdoor faucets. However, if you take the necessary steps to prepare for these conditions, then you will have no problems when it comes time to turn on those spigots again. Hopefully, this article has given you some insight as to how best to prepare for the winter ahead, so that your family stays warm and well hydrated during those cold months.
Get Your Outdoor Plumbing Checked Over for Correct Winterization Preparation and Maintenance by Your Trusted Plumbing Team
Remember, winterization preparation and maintenance can help keep everything running smoothly throughout the cold season – so make sure that any problems are found before they lead to more extensive damage!
At H.E.B Plumbing & Sprinkler, we’re here to help you with all your plumbing and sprinkler needs. We’ve been providing reliable service in the DFW community for over 30 years, and we’re ready to help you today. Contact our team to schedule your appointment or for more information on our services.