I Was Waiting For This

[poliphilo]

A pipe burst in the kitchen. I was in the next room and heard it break- and got the stop-cock turned before the house filled up with water. Ailz called a plumber and the man was on the road somewhere in our vicinity and got here and had the pipe mended within an hour. This is going to cost us our insurers £75.

I followed your advice last night and left a tap dripping.

Comments

[michaleen.livejournal.com]

Now I'm a bit worried. I don't think leaving it dripping caused it to burst or at least I have never heard of such a thing.

Truth to tell, I am very surprised that one of these pipes has not burst before now. Each time they freeze, they swell a bit more. It's just a matter of time with copper pipes. With iron or pvc, they often burst first time they freeze.

Great to hear you were there and got the water shut off in time. You were lucky.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Ah no, 'tother way round. Leaving the tap to drip means the water is circulating and is less likely to freeze. It's a precautionary measure.

[michaleen.livejournal.com]

The pipes here froze inside an outside wall, between the first and second floors - or second and third, depending on how you look at it. I think the low that night was well-below zero, Fahrenheit.

I suspect that next time they'll start to leak or - Goddess forbid - burst outright. Thankfully, it's been more than ten years ago since it got that cold and it hasn't happened again.