Cold temperatures bring frozen pipes; plumbers urge preparation, caution

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — As temperatures stay low, hopefully you’re keeping your home and pipes protected. A local plumbing company said they took well over 100 calls on Monday and one was from a local business where a frozen pipe ended up bursting.

The picture below is an example of what can happen when temperatures get as cold as they have been outside. That burst pipe was part of a very long job on Monday for Hull Plumbing at a dental office in Oklahoma City.

The dental office job was one of 130 calls they took that day. Though Jesse Hull with the company said that number isn’t as bad at this point as it’s been in recent years, they still want people to be careful.

The following video shows an employee of Hull Plumbing working to thaw out the frozen lines during that same job. Hull said it’s not easy work either.

"That one was about a six hour job,” Hull said. “We successfully got it undone. They had low water pressure afterwards, but it did get thawed out."

They were working to thaw two frozen lines total. The one that burst was used for one of their dental tools and it just didn’t make it.

"That one actually is designed to expand a little bit versus PVC or a copper,” Hull said. “That's designed to expand, It just experienced it's bursting point."

Hull said those in trailer homes or homes with crawl spaces need to be especially careful.

"Because they have vents,” he said. “They're not a slab house and plumbing is elevated."

He added that preparation is the key to keeping your pipes and pocketbook safe. Be sure and stream your faucets at no bigger than a pencil lead with both hot and cold water. Also, be sure to cover any outside spigots and open cabinet doors to circulate heat to.

"The longer it stays cold, the longer stuff is going to freeze,” Hull said.

Taking care of your car in these temperatures is also very important. We have more information on that from AAA in the story linked here.