How To Prevent Frozen Pipes in Utah
Disconnect every hose before the first freeze, get heat or insulation into crawlspaces, and let a tap trickle on the coldest nights. Those three things prevent the large majority of frozen pipe calls we attend.
What to do right now
Do these first. None of them need tools or plumbing knowledge, and they limit what this ends up costing you.
- Disconnect the hoses, nowA hose left connected traps water in the bib and in the wall behind it, and that is the single most common preventable freeze failure in Weber County. Frost free bibs still fail with a hose attached.
- Close crawlspace vents for winterAn open vented crawlspace drops to outside temperature. Closing the vents and insulating exposed runs costs very little and removes most of the risk in a crawlspace home.
- Let a tap trickle on the worst nightsMoving water is much harder to freeze, and an open tap relieves the pressure that actually splits the pipe. A slow trickle at the fixture furthest from the main is enough.
- Open cabinet doors under sinks on exterior wallsIt lets household heat reach pipes that are otherwise sitting in a closed cold box against an outside wall.
Does this need a plumber tonight?
- A pipe that has already frozen
- No water at all during a freeze
- Any sign a frozen pipe has split
- Preventative work before a cold snap
- Insulation and heat tape you are planning to fit
What fails first, every year
Hose bibs with hoses attached, then uninsulated crawlspace runs, then pipes in north facing exterior walls, then anything in a garage.
The order is remarkably consistent across the area we cover. Knowing it lets you spend prevention money where it actually helps rather than insulating everything indiscriminately.
Elevation matters too. Homes on the bench in North Ogden and Pleasant View, and everything in the Ogden Valley, freeze earlier and for longer than the valley floor.
- Hose bibs with a hose still connected
- Crawlspace runs with open vents and no insulation
- Pipes in north facing exterior walls
- Garage walls and unheated utility rooms
- Lines serving seldom used bathrooms or additions
- Second homes and cabins left at low heat
If you leave the property in winter
Either keep the heat high enough to protect the plumbing and have someone check the house, or drain the system down properly. The half measure of low heat with the water on is what produces the worst damage.
A burst in an empty property runs until someone finds it, which in a second home can be weeks. That is where the genuinely catastrophic water damage in our service area happens, and it is entirely preventable.
If you are leaving for more than a few days in winter, shutting the main off and opening a tap is a reasonable precaution even in an occupied neighbourhood.
Questions people ask about this
What temperature should I leave the heat at?
Warm enough that the coldest part of the house stays above freezing, which usually means considerably more than the minimum setting. Remember the crawlspace and the garage are colder than the thermostat reading.
Is heat tape worth it?
On a run that has frozen before and cannot easily be insulated or heated, yes. Fit it according to the instructions and do not overlap it, because badly installed heat tape is a fire risk.
Do frost free hose bibs need disconnecting?
Yes. The frost free design only works if the bib can drain, and a connected hose stops it draining. This catches out a great many homeowners with new houses.
If that is not quite what you have
Not sure how urgent this is?
Describe what you can see and hear. We will tell you whether it needs someone tonight, and what to do in the meantime either way.
Or send it over
Four things and a photo.