How to Protect Your Pipes Before a Freeze

Cold weather in North Texas can cause serious plumbing problems if your home isn’t prepared. Freezing temperatures often lead to frozen pipes, burst lines, and costly water damage — but a few simple steps can help protect your home.

In this vlog, Master Plumber Steve from GPS Plumbing shares three easy and affordable ways homeowners can winterize their plumbing system before a freeze hits.

Simple Winter Plumbing Tips to Prevent Frozen Pipes

Preparing your home before freezing temperatures arrive can save you thousands in repairs. Here are three key areas Steve recommends checking to protect your plumbing system.

  • Cover Your Outdoor Hose Bibs Start by installing hose bib covers on all outdoor faucets. These covers help prevent freezing and are inexpensive and easy to install. You can find them at most hardware stores like Home Depot or Lowe’s. This small step can make a big difference in protecting exterior plumbing from cold weather.
  • Let Warm Air Reach Your Pipes & Keep Water Moving On deep freeze days, open the cabinet doors under sinks — especially those located on exterior walls. This allows warm air from your home to circulate around the pipes. It’s also important to let faucets trickle slightly to keep water flowing. Moving water is much less likely to freeze inside the walls.
  • Tankless Water Heater Tip: If you have a tankless water heater, make sure the hot water is trickling a little more than normal — about half a gallon per minute — so the unit stays on and doesn’t freeze.
  • Check Pipes in the Attic Your attic is another critical area to inspect. Look for any exposed PEX or copper piping, especially on cold water lines. While Texas requires basic insulation on pipes, upgrading to thicker insulation covers can provide extra protection in problem areas. These insulation covers are simple to install, affordable, and can greatly reduce the risk of freezing.

Video Transcript

Hi, this is Steve with GPS Plumbing.

Today we’re going to talk about how to winterize your home and protect your pipes before a freeze.

Let the water trickle from your faucet to help avoid frozen pipes.

First, start by getting a hose bib cover and placing it over your outdoor faucets to keep them from freezing. You can pick these up at places like Home Depot or Lowe’s.

Next, on deep freeze days, open your cabinet doors under sinks on exterior walls to allow warm air to reach the pipes.

Also, keep your faucets trickling so water continues to flow and doesn’t freeze inside the walls.

If you have a tankless water heater, make sure the hot water is trickling a little more than normal — about half a gallon per minute — so the unit stays on and doesn’t freeze.

The final place to check is your attic. Look for exposed PEX or copper piping, especially on cold water lines.

Texas requires minimum insulation, but upgrading to thicker insulation covers can help protect problem areas. They’re easy to install and relatively inexpensive.

These simple steps can save you a lot of money on burst pipes and frozen water heaters.

If you have any questions, give us a call at GPS Plumbing, 469-777-0217.