January 24, 2013
As the homeowners hunker down for a blast of bitterly cold weather this week, the last thing on your mind might be your pipes, but it's important to remember dangerously cold temperatures pose hazards to property.
When the outside temperature drops below 20 degrees Fahrenheit, water pipes in homes with little or no insulation are likely to freeze and break. A one-eighth inch crack in a pipe can spew out more than 250 gallons of water a day, destroying floors, soaking furniture, and ruining personal items. Cleaning up after a pipe burst is time-consuming and smelly, made even more difficult by the frigid temperatures.
Avoid frozen pipes by insulating pipes that run along outside walls, floors and ceilings. Disconnect outside garden hoses, wrap exposed pipes with insulating sleeves or tape, and seal foundation cracks that let arctic air freeze pipes in crawlspaces.
There are a few simple tasks homeowners can do in about two minutes that can help protect pipes and homes when a severe freeze is predicted:
For more tips on how to prevent water damage from frozen pipes, watch this video: http://youtu.be/W8pBFHBvfto.
Amy Preddy
State Farm Public Affairs
Phone: (434) 872-5211
Cell: (434) 981-3071
State Farm and its affiliates are the largest provider of car insurance in the U.S. and is a leading insurer in Canada. In addition to providing auto insurance quotes, their 17,800 agents and more than 65,000 employees serve 81 million policies and accounts - more than 79 million auto, home, life and health policies in the United States and Canada, and nearly 2 million bank accounts. Commercial auto insurance, along with coverage for renters, business owners, boats and motorcycles, is also available. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent of the State Farm family of companies. State Farm is ranked No. 43 on the Fortune 500 list of largest companies. For more information, please visit http://www.statefarm.com or in Canada http://www.statefarm.ca.
