How To Thaw a Frozen Water Pipe:
Save the Plumbing Before Ice Bursts the Plumbing Supply Lines
© 2008 by Kelly Smith all rights reserved
Freezing winter weather brings Thanksgiving, Christmas fun, and frozen pipes. Learn how to prevent
frozen water pipes with insulation and how to thaw water pipes with a hair dryer or heat gun.
Yes, winter is here or looming on the horizon, depending on the particular latitude of residence.
Winter brings the family together for holiday celebrations like Christmas, Thanksgiving and Hanukkah.
But good and bad tend to travel together.
So what nasty little winter events can be expected? Other than that horrid fruit cake that Aunt Hanna
brings to the Thanksgiving dinner every year? The usually ill-timed frozen water pipe is one that
pops to mind. This article will discuss how to thaw a frozen water pipe.
Prevent a Frozen Water Pipe
Benjamin Franklin nailed it squarely when he quipped, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound
of cure.”
The best time to fix a frozen water pipe is before it happens. That is, a proper plumbing inspection
should be done before the arctic weather actually arrives. The October through November time frame is
usually appropriate, but again, it depends on latitude. This is part of the home winterizing schedule.
Do you have water pipes in the attic? In the crawl space? Get in there with a flashlight and make
sure that everything is well insulated. The pipes themselves need insulation. Foam pipe insulation with a
factory-cut slit is cheap and easy to install.
Use silver duct tape to seal the slit, and at intersections and elbows. Don't use regular
duct tape. It’s not really for use in the attic.
Other products for very exposed areas are UL-listed “heat tape”, and “heat cable”.
The local hardware store should stock products suitable for local use.
Got a swimming pool in the back yard? If it’s not heated over the cold season, drain it, and the
plumbing, if the weather is particularly severe. If you do keep it heated over the cold spell, keep
a pool cover on it when it’s not in use.
When a Frozen Pipe Does Happen
Frozen water pipes will happen occasionally, even when all precautions have been taken. First, try
running water through the pipe. Does it flow at all? If so, just let it keep flowing to speed the
thawing process.
The objective is to get things back to normal before the pipe expands so much that it ruptures.
There are several items that will speed thawing the frozen water pipe:
- A space heater. This is a help when using the methods below, speeding the thawing process,
and keeping the person/people doing the work more comfortable.
- A hair dryer. This is a great gadget to thaw plumbing. Don’t overheat the pipe in one spot,
but keep it moving, as if spray painting.
- A heat gun. This is preferable if one is close at hand. A heat gun is like a hair dryer on
steroids. Once again, keep it moving.
- Water-soaked towels. Soaking towels in hot water and wrapping the pipes also works well.
This works best with two or three people. The objective is to keep the towels hot. You’re
going to want to wear rubber gloves if you opt for this method.
- An electric heating pad. This is preferable to the towel method because it’s dry and covers
more real estate.
Precautions While Thawing a Water Pipe
Do not use a blowtorch to thaw pipes. It might sound logical, but it’s too much horsepower.
Likewise, don't use any other open flame tool. Much too dangerous in any confined space.
And After the Thaw…
Once the water pipe is thawed and flowing normally, check carefully for any pipe cracks that
might have developed. If there are any leaks, the plumbing must be repaired as soon as possible.
Especially if the leak is in the attic, there is going to be a
drywall repair job to take care of.
That’s what happened in the photo above.
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Now that problem spots have been identified, think of better precautions to take in the future.
Install more insulation? More heat in the area? Relocate the lines? Think creatively and think
outside the box.
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