How to Know When to Call a Professional to Fix Your Frozen Pipes

Image courtesy of Mike Dot Mike/Flickr.

Unfortunately, frozen pipes are one of the dangers that comes with this time of year. As the temperatures drop outside your pipes are prone to freezing, which can cause significant damage to your plumbing system, foundation, drywall, flooring, appliances and other parts of your home.

In some cases, you can actually deal with frozen pipes on your own and get your system running smoothly again. In other cases, you will need to call a professional plumber to thaw the pipes, repair the damage and make sure your system is working properly. But how do you know when you should handle the frozen pipes yourself and when you should call an expert who provides frozen pipe repairs on Long Island?

When to Thaw Pipes Yourself

If you notice a significant decrease in water pressure during the winter, or if water doesn’t flow from your faucet or other appliance, your pipes may be frozen. Inspect pipes that are exposed to the air and look for a section that is covered in frost or ice. When you find it, check to see if there is any bulging, cracks or breaks. If there isn’t, you may be able to thaw the pipes yourself.

Make sure the faucet that is connected to the pipes is open, and then use a blow dryer and slowly move it near the pipes and across the entire frozen area to melt the ice. You can also wrap an electric heating pad around the pipe or set up a space heater near the pipes to thaw them out. Never use an open flame to do this. You will know the pipes have been thawed when water starts running out of the faucet again.

When to Call an Expert

In more serious cases, you should not attempt to thaw the pipes yourself. If the pipe is broken or bulging or if the pipes you think are frozen are behind a wall you should call an expert. If you aren’t able to thaw them out yourself, using the suggestions above, an expert can help.

When pipes are broken or bulging, they will need to be repaired before you can use them again. If you try to thaw them out yourself you could cause additional damage or even flooding, which can damage flooring, drywall and other areas near the pipes.

Knowing when to call a professional and when you can mange frozen pipes yourself is important as the weather gets colder. We offer frozen pipe repairs on Long Island, and can visit your home to thaw and repair pipes so you can get back to celebrating the holidays.