Inspire Magazine - Issue 1, 2019

ADVICE
Top tips to beat the
freeze during winter
As the temperature drops during the long dark nights,
your home needs a little bit of care to ensure you don’t
run into any problems.
There are many things you can do!
The most common problems can be a loss of water
supply, heating issues, leaking toilets and sinks not
draining - often because of frozen pipes.
Before reporting a repair - save time and money by
following these simple tips during cold weather:
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If you know where your stop tap is, empty the cupboard and
allow some warm air to circulate around the pipe. Try blowing
warm air on the pipe using a hairdryer or place a small heater in
front of the cupboard.
After a few minutes you should find that the water starts to
defrost. You should not leave heated appliances unattended
whilst doing this.
You might find that the condensate pipe on your boiler has
frozen - the pipe from your boiler which leads to an outside
drain. Try these ways to thaw the frozen pipe:
• Use hot water (not boiling) and pour it over the end of the pipe
where it’s frozen, using a suitable container like a watering can.
• Hold a hot water bottle or heat wrap around the pipe.
• Once the pipe has thawed you should reset your boiler.
Hold the re-set button for 10 seconds and wait for it to re-fire.
If your toilet or sink is not draining, it probably isn’t a blockage
that can be fixed by a plumber. Before reporting this as a
repair, pour some hot water down as this may defrost the
frozen water in the pipes.
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Leave your heating on a low setting during the night
to stop pipes freezing.
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@onemcr