Frost protection for the holiday home: avoid burst pipes while the house sits empty
When the frost sets in and the holiday home sits empty, there is one thing in particular that can go wrong and get expensive: the water pipes. Water that freezes expands and can burst a pipe. If it goes unnoticed, a single burst pipe can cause water damage that runs for days. Fortunately it is preventable.
Why pipes burst
Water expands as it turns to ice. If water is left in a pipe, a water heater or a trap, and the temperature drops below freezing, the ice presses against the pipe walls until it cracks. The damage often shows only when it thaws again and the water begins to run.
How to frost-protect
If your house is not lived in during winter, the safest solution is to drain the system completely: turn off the water at the mains, open all taps, and drain the water heater, toilet and pipes. Pour a little antifreeze into traps and toilet so they neither freeze nor dry out. Alternatively you can keep a constant background heat of at least a few degrees throughout the house, but remember that a power cut then leaves the house unprotected.
Background heat or draining
Rule of thumb: if you can guarantee stable heat and power all winter, many keep a low background heat and leave the water in. If the house is completely empty for long periods, or you are unsure about the power, draining is the safe solution. It takes about an hour, but it is cheap compared to water damage.
If you cannot come yourself
If you live far from the holiday home, it is hard to check it yourself when the weather turns. After hard frost or a storm it is a good idea for someone to look in and make sure everything is as it should be. That is exactly the kind of thing that prevents the big damages.
We offer watch-over-winter service for holiday-home owners in our area: we look in after frost and storm, check for damp and damage and tell you straight away if something is wrong. Then you can sleep easy, even when it freezes.
See also: our holiday home cleaning in Blåvand and Oksbøl.