My water line is frozen help?

Question

My water line is frozen is there anything I can do?

Answer 1

Use a hair dryer on the pipes to warm them up. Turn the faucet on first!

Answer 2

First, you need to determine where it is frozen. Is the whole house without water, or just one area?

If the whole house is without water, it is unlikely that opening a cupboard or heating the pipes below the sink would do anything.

If the whole house is frozen, take a look at your water meter. One of my rentals froze up because someone had kicked off the cover and left a crack for the cold air to get in. If that is the case, a light on an extension cord might help unfreeze it or a large pot of hot water poured on the pipes and meter might help.

Be careful incase the pipes are cracked. If the crack is on your side, you will have to pay for the repair and the water, so have the emergency water department number handy to come turn off your water if you don't have a water key.

If that turns out not to be your problem and you have a crawl space, rent or purchase a blower. These are oblong and use either kerosene or diesel. Use kerosene, as it smells much less.

Open up your crawl space entry and set the blower so that the door is barely open and warm up the entire crawl space.

Do not go shopping go drinking or next-door. Stay close by and make sure you don't accidentally catch anything on fire. Also, it is likely the pipes may be burst, and you will need to turn off the water with your water key, or call the emergency number for the water department.

If you have CPVC pipes, it is likely they broke and often the break runs until the next joint. If you have galvanized pipes, they usually only burst in one area.

If you have CPVC, it is any easy fix, and you don't need to call a plumber. Just purchase the run size you need, 3/4" and/or 1/2" and components, elbows, splices, cleaner and glue. You can purchase a cutter too. That will cost around $15. Everything shouldn't run more than $30 if it is CPVC.

Now, in the rare occurrence it froze underground, you will need to call a plumber. Sorry.

Good Luck.

Answer 3

Bluebetta is correct. Just try to run that water on hot, just a trickle and she's right about the cabinet doors too! If you have an electric space heater, you could even aim it at the pipes that are frozen, but not right up against them. You want them to warm up slowly.

Answer 4

Not really but put something warm on the effected area. If you live in a cold climate where it freezes most of the time they make pipes that have a insulated thing that warms the pipes and keeps them from freezing and busting and clogging with ice. Worth the money

Answer 5

Too many ?'s

Private well or city water ?

What is your USDA Zone? and How deep should you pipes have been buried ?

If'n you got a well means you need someone with a backhoe
to bury your water lines deeper

(Zone 4 with pipes 4ft below grade)

Answer 6

use an electric heater in the basement close to the pipes,whenever your water comes back on always let it leak a little from the faucets that will keep it from freezing up.

Answer 7

turn ur water off.... or open the valve when it is not frozen let it run wrap the pipe running water helps with not freezing...

Answer 8

Well i don't really know what you can do but you can alway go to a hotel and rent a room just to take a shower or go to a friends house or something...

Answer 9

Use something to apply heat, hair dryer, something. Then wrap it in heat tape sold at most hardware stores to prevent this from happening.

Answer 10

open your faucets a small bit. This will help to prevent cracked water lines.

Open cubbords or anything possible to allow heat to get under places to help thaw them.