Water Pipes ????

For those of y'all that "trickle" water to keep pipes from freezing; is there a "certain" amount of water that needs to flow to prevent freezing???

Thanks!!

 

If I was you I would not bank the stove when its really gonna get cold at night and let the furnace run some...I have never let my water run like that so I am no help, sorry....

 

Not sure MW, but my sis-in-law just had a problem with the pipes in her well pit starting to freeze.
She lost water pressure, then no water.
Put some insulation under the pit lid and plugged in a heat lamp. A few hours later, things loosened up enough she got things going.

 

Just a slow drip works for me. But I guess it depends on how cold it gets.....

 

I have wireless indoor outdoor thermometer that reads under my trailer and a light bulb and if gonna get real cold or temp drops to much underneath I let the furnace run...

 

My dad always told me that simply a dripping faucet will keep even a problematic pipe from freezing. A rental house we lived at had a shallow supply pipe and a dripping laundry faucet always kept the line from freezing even in really cold temps.

 

Last winter when all the cities/townships had trouble with freeze ups around here, they would authorize letting the water run without being charged for it. You would first have to take a meter reazding and then let her run.

The amount of "trickle" that the municipalities would recommend was a stream of water no larger than the thickness of a pencil. Sounds kinda large, but it sure beats putting the township/city crews out there in below zero and overtime pay conditions!

 

smoke show said he ran a vent pipe with a small fan in it to redirect the heat from his clothes hamper that his underwear went in to the underside of where his water lines run. Never a problem since.

 

Slow trickles will sometimes freeze depending on the temperature of the source water. If your supply runs too close to the surface it may be at or just below freezing temps. The movement and pressure will keep it from freezing but, like a slow moving stream, it can eventually freeze.

In a home with small pipes, usually 1.25" or less, a tiny trickle will prevent the bursting of the pipe as the water freezes. If your pipes are in good condition the minor expansion of the water will not generate enough lateral pressure to bust the pipe. The expansion will be guided by the pipe along the length of the pipe compressing the water ahead of it. As the freeze moves the pressure in the liquid water will increase until it is powerful enough to burst the weakest piece of pipe. The slightest trickle will release that pressure and save the pipe. Think about it, if you have town water and your shut-off valve fails the plumber will freeze the supply line to stop the water flow so he can change the valve.

KaptJaq

 

I run the sink out in the unheated laundry room at a trickle and the sink in the slightly heated master bathroom at the opposite end of the house at a trickle also so far no problems with frozen pipes.

 

Insulation is your best defense.
The hot water always freezes first, the pressure doesn't make a difference.

 

Never, I repeat NEVER tell Gasifier a secret!

 

I can just imagine that the water departments will be busy when we get some warm temps.