Is your home in jeopardy of frozen pipes? Tips for bitter cold temps

The cold temps have the potential to lead to a heating emergency for homeowners. Is your home in jeopardy?

Following some simple tips can help homeowners keep their homes in order and avoid the damage of bursting pipes.

Big picture view:

It was a bitter cold day in downtown Burlington, with icicles hanging above their snow-covered sidewalks. Their waterfront view showed an icy Delaware River today.

Tommy Spezzano with Davis Plumbing says it’s a sign that their calls are likely going to go up. This week he says they have doubled, if not tripled, for frozen pipes and other issues.

He walked through a Burlington home with FOX 29 to give some tips, starting with the garden hose, which was still attached to the home.

"One of the problems is this holds water back and as it freezes up, as you can hear that’s completely frozen solid, it will now freeze the copper line going into the house once that happens, as this pipe thaws out, the pressure builds up, causing a leak inside the walls," says Spezzano. "Unfortunately, the only thing that can be done, we have to shut the water off inside the house, try to turn the heat up a little bit, try to get it to thaw out before any kind of damage does happen."

What they're saying:

The home had their exhaust on the second level of the home, which can prevent build-up.

For homeowners that have them on the first level, he recommends checking it periodically, especially this time of year.

"When it’s on the lower half of the home, the snowbanks will cover it up, causing the heaters to short cycle," he says. "Best thing people can do if they have one in that spot? Check it periodically, make sure that it’s not built up with any kind of snow any kind of debris."

What you can do:

Spezzano showed the homeowner’s water main, insulated in their crawl space, which he recommends. He says all homeowners should know where their main shutoff valve is.

"Turn your heat up a little more than you normally would, all your cabinets, open up the doors, try to keep as much heat in there as possible, and keep everything as warm as you possibly can get."

Winter WeatherBurlington CountyNews