A frozen pipe is one of the most expensive — and most preventable — failures we get called for in Middle Tennessee. An hour of prep in the fall saves a flooded home in January. Here’s the checklist.
Before winter: freeze-proof the house
Do these once, ahead of the cold:
- Insulate exposed pipes in crawlspaces, garages, and along exterior walls. Foam pipe sleeves are cheap insurance.
- Disconnect and drain outdoor hoses, and shut off/drain exterior spigots where you can.
- Seal gaps where cold air reaches plumbing — rim joists, crawlspace vents, and where pipes pass through walls.
- Find your main water shutoff and label it. You want to know exactly where it is before a 2 a.m. emergency, not during one.
- Service your heating system so it doesn’t quit on the coldest night of the year.
The night a hard freeze hits
When temps drop into the low 20s and below:
- Let a faucet drip — moving water is far less likely to freeze. Pick a faucet on an exterior wall.
- Open cabinet doors under sinks so warm room air reaches the pipes behind them.
- Keep the heat on, even if you’re away. Don’t drop the thermostat below the mid-50s during a hard freeze.
- Open interior doors to keep warm air circulating to colder rooms.
Which pipes fail first
In our climate, the trouble spots are predictable:
- Pipes in unheated crawlspaces and garages.
- Plumbing along exterior walls, especially north-facing.
- Exterior spigots and anything connected to them.
Those are the places to focus your insulation and attention. Older Middle Tennessee homes — farmhouses and houses added onto over the years — often have plumbing runs in exactly these vulnerable spots, which is why they’re worth a look before winter.
If a pipe freezes or bursts
- Frozen but not burst: open the faucet and gently warm the pipe (hair dryer, space heater at a safe distance — never an open flame). Flowing water means it’s thawing.
- Burst: shut off the main immediately, then call a professional to repair the line and assess water damage. Fast action limits the mold and rot that follow standing water.
Make it a maintenance habit
Freeze-proofing is exactly the kind of seasonal work our handyman service is built for — insulate the pipes, seal the gaps, drain the spigots, all in one visit. Bundle it with your other fall to-dos and cross the whole list off at once.
Want your home ready before the first hard freeze? See our handyman service, consider a Home Care membership for seasonal check-ups, or request a free quote.