Roscoe Brown maintenance plan offers many advantages

It will be cold soon in Tennessee. Well, as cold as it gets around here. Winter weather can put your pipes at risk of bursting. 

A pipe can burst due to compromised water lines or sub-freezing outdoor temperatures. So get out your winter coat, light a fire in the fireplace and follow these 7 tips for making sure your pipes don’t freeze.

1. Keep your heat on. While we recommend turning your heat down a bit in the winter to save money and avoid overworking your HVAC unit, we also suggest that you don’t turn it off completely. We’ve seen families leave for week-long trips in the winter only to return to burst pipes. We assure you the money you could potentially save by turning off the heat is nothing compared to your water bill and what it will cost to clean up the mess if a pipe bursts.
2. Keep the cold out. Make sure you block off all foundation vents to stop cold air from freezing pipes in your home. Be sure to seal up any cracks or holes that could let out heat or let in cold air.
3. Keep garage doors closed. Along the same lines as filling any gaps in your home, we also recommend that you make sure your garage doors are closed tightly every night. This is especially important if there are water supply lines in the garage. 
4. Let the faucet drip. Ordinarily, a faucet dripping would be a sign that you need to make a repair. But in this case, it could actually help you avoid repair. When a pipe freezes, it’s the pressure that does the damage. By letting the faucet drip, you are relieving pressure from the pipes.
5. Protect your pipes. Anytime you’re winterizing your home, it’s a good idea to insulate pipes that are exposed to colder weather. These could be pipes in the basement, attic or anywhere that doesn’t benefit from the heat in your house. You can use a more traditional pipe wrap insulation or foam pipe sleeves. If you have trouble locating the pipes or installing insulation, we’ll be happy to help.
6. Replace your pipes. If you own an older home or commercial property, you may have noticed that your plumbing system isn’t working perfectly. Unfortunately, some minor problems can quickly turn into major, systemic issues. If you’ve noticed any of the following, it may be time to replace pipes:

• You notice black flakes or rusty coloring in your water.
• Drains clear slowly or foul smells emit from drains despite regular cleaning.
• Your property’s water pressure has gone down without any change in the water pressure at the street level.
• You deal with leaky pipes on a regular basis.
• Your water heater is in good condition but no longer supplies enough heated water to meet your needs.

 

Get a Plumbing Maintenance Agreement with Roscoe Brown

Preventative plumbing maintenance is essential to keep your plumbing system performing at peak efficiency. The maintenance programs offered by Roscoe Brown are designed to help lower your utility bills and extend the life of your fixtures and plumbing pipes. For instance, here are some of the benefits:

Saving Money: Our technicians inspect, test and calibrate all plumbing systems and fixtures to provide maximum efficiency. Leaks can be identified and repaired, which saves on utility costs and limits the potential for structural water damage.

Minimize Disruption: While often taken for granted, running water is a critical part of a family’s daily routine. Our technicians help ensure that your access to fresh water and proper drainage remains uninterrupted.

Locate Minor Problems: Periodic visits to your home or office can help locate small problems before they affect the performance of the entire plumbing system. Frozen pipes, overflowing toilets and backed-up drains can be strongly reduced with a preventative maintenance program.

Emergency Service: We provide 24-hour emergency service to all customers with an active maintenance contract.