Outside taps

[Janne]

Just thought I give you people a tip that can save you a bit of money. As you are experiencing sub zero (C) temperatures, your outside water tap can freeze and burst.
Those insulating 'socks' you can buy are useless for more than a couple of hours.
The best way to prevent the pipe freezing is to turn the tap on so you get a rapid drip. This way the water will not freeze.

 

[Fadcode]

Just thought I give you people a tip that can save you a bit of money. As you are experiencing sub zero (C) temperatures, your outside water tap can freeze and burst.
Those insulating 'socks' you can buy are useless for more than a couple of hours.
The best way to prevent the pipe freezing is to turn the tap on so you get a rapid drip. This way the water will not freeze.

Nice Idea, unfortunately down here in Cornwall we are fleeced over the price of water, it would be cheaper to go to a hotel rather than have a dripping tap
I once dreamt of having a rapid dripping tap, but knew I would have to win the lottery to achieve it........lol

 

[Janne]

It is only for a day or two. Until it gets to the usual plus temp.
A little bit of water is cheaper than having to replace a pipe that burst just inside a wall.

just out of interest, what is your average monthly water bill? Just the water amount.

 

[Toddy]

We turn off and drain down the outside taps when the first frosts hit. The problem with leaving them running is that the water has to go somewhere, and it rapidly becomes an ice rink when it freezes.

I don't need to water the garden in Winter, and the outside sink beside the greenhouse catches enough rainwater for whatever pots need cleaning.

I think it's a personal circumstances thing. We manage this way, but others find they do need water outside and they use an insulated box cover over the tap, not just the wrap around cover thing. Maybe if we kept livestock ?

M

 

[Janne]

If you can drain it - the best way.
If you leave it dripping for a couple of days it will not be much ice. That will melt as soon as it gets to plus again.

I do not know in UK, but in Sweden most if not all, farms have heated water pipes between the well and stables.

We had some very bad weather for a couple of weeks in the early 1980's (81-82?) in the south of Sweden, around -30C. Pipes froze, cattle died.
Army had to establish emergency water supply deliveries to cattle farmers. After that they started putting in heated pipes, or went much deeper, to below the frost level.

My 'organic' hippie friend lost most of his cows, could only save a handful and his bull. His barn was not heated and only those ones he took indoors could be saved.

 

[Fadcode]

It is only for a day or two. Until it gets to the usual plus temp.
A little bit of water is cheaper than having to replace a pipe that burst just inside a wall.

just out of interest, what is your average monthly water bill? Just the water amount.

about 45-50 gbp.........on a meter so depends on use, but it isnt cheap down here, most of our pipes are indoors, only the garden tap is outside and that is well lagged, some of the older houses here have outside pipes.

 

[Janne]

We have expensive water ( expensive desalination process) but I do not think we pay as much as you. Around 60USD a month. I have a 'no water ' garden. Only water the bananas.

The lagging does not work in temps below freezing for days.

Outside water pipes? You sure? Sewage outside I have seen in Uk.

 

[Fadcode]

We have expensive water ( expensive desalination process) but I do not think we pay as much as you. Around 60USD a month. I have a 'no water ' garden. Only water the bananas.

The lagging does not work in temps below freezing for days.

Outside water pipes? You sure? Sewage outside I have seen in Uk.

Yes a lot of the old houses when converted to have an upstairs toilet, this connected to the normal downflow pipe, but the bath water, basin water, normally ran out of the wall down the roof(inside a plastic pipe) then through the gutter to the drain, water in the pipe freezes quite easily and basically blocks the pipe, I have just spent the afternoon sorting my daughters house out, which had this problem, the extensions on the house were not done properly,(done before she bought it), als a lot of our houses are multi level, as most are built on hills, and this itself leads to problems of water running off properly.

 

[Nice65]

I disconnected the hosepipe outside, closed the valve beneath the kitchen sink that feeds the outside tap, and opened the tap. Then wrapped it in bubble wrap, some hessian, and elastic bands.

If it bursts, it bursts, but it won't flood anything.