There are steps you can take to avoid the misery and damage caused by burst pipes during extreme cold weather.
You should:
- Keep your home warm, especially at night
- Run taps and flush toilets to check that pipes aren't frozen
- Know where your stop tap is and make sure you can easily turn it off
- Make sure you can turn off the gate valves for hot and cold water tanks
- If you're leaving your home unoccupied for a long time, consider draining the whole water system down; and
- If you live in a flat or maisonette, leave a spare key with a neighbour. A flood in an upstairs flat can cause damage to your home
What to do if you suffer a frozen or burst pipe
Frozen pipes:
- Turn off the water at the stop tap
- Switch off the central heating
- Switch off the immersion or gas water heating
- You can try to thaw the frozen pipes gently with a hairdryer or fan heater
Burst pipes:
- Turn off the water at the stop tap
- Turn off the immersion or gas water heating
- Turn on the sink, bathroom or kitchen taps to drain water from the system
- Don't touch any electrical fittings
- Turn off the electricity at the mains fuse board