With the onset of frost, did the water or sewer pipe freeze? Tips & Tricks

Before you start defrosting water pipes, you should disconnect your water supply from the main line, i.e. block the flow of water into the room.

As a rule, sewer pipes are the easiest to defrost, since hot water, with which, in fact, they warm the frozen pipe, passes to the outlet through the sewer pipe, which greatly speeds up the defrosting process.

Before the defrosting process, determine the section of the pipe that has been frozen and provide free space for it in advance, this will simplify and speed up your further work. If the water or sewer pipe is underground, it is necessary to excavate a trench in advance and remove the insulation from the frozen pipe

There are several time-tested ways to thaw or thaw frozen water pipes

• Hot water

Quite common in its simplicity and time-tested is the defrosting of water pipes with hot water. This method is most recommended for defrosting indoor water pipes. To do this, you need to prepare such improvised means:

• hot water (preferably boiling water) and a container for watering – a kettle
• rags
• empty buckets or basins

So

• Use prepared rags to wrap a section of a frozen pipe
• It is advisable to lay dry rags or another surface that absorbs water under the section of the defrosting pipe, or substitute a basin or bucket to avoid puddles of drained water on the floor
• Carefully pour the wrapped section of the pipe with prepared hot water from the kettle. First, it is recommended to start watering with cold water, then increase the temperature with hot water. Until the pipe thaws

If the pipe section to be heated is long enough, it is recommended to start the heating process from the side where the water is supplied.

• Heating cable

A heating cable is also used to thaw frozen plastic water pipes. What you will need:

• heating cable
• adhesive tape
• Aluminum foil (or aluminum adhesive film)
• insulation (mineral wool or polypropylene)

Getting Started:

• Wrap foil or aluminum foil tightly around the frozen pipe.
• Wrap everything from above with a heating cable (in order not to damage the heating cable, it is recommended to wrap it spirally, with a recommended step of at least 8-10 cm) and secure with adhesive tape.
• Next, close to the frozen water pipe, you need to install a cable sensor that will regulate the automatic disconnection of the cable.
• It is necessary to lay accessible insulation on top and connect the cable to the mains.

• Open flame

For cast-iron and steel pipes frozen in a trench, the heating method is used with an open flame. It implies the use of a blowtorch or a welding heater for this. This method is categorically contraindicated in experimenting with plastic pipes.

Initially, in order to insure and protect yourself and the pipe from combustible structures, it is recommended to place a metal sheet under the pipe, which sometimes needs to be cooled with water. After security measures, starting from the side of the water supply, using available means – a blowtorch or a welding heater – direct the flame directly to the section of the frozen pipe, moving around the entire perimeter.

A welding machine for defrosting water pipes is used, as a rule, if the frozen section of the pipe is of small length, or for pipes with a small diameter.

Defrosting small areas occurs as follows:

• welding current should be set to about 100 A, then
• welding wire (plus and minus) is attached to the ends of the frozen section of the pipe
• plug in the welding machine for 30 seconds,
• pause for approximately 10 seconds and turn on again.

If there is no effect and the pipe does not heat up, the welding current value can be slightly increased and try again.

• Technical hair dryer

Another way to warm up a frozen pipe is with the help of technical hair dryers (or, if one is not available, and the pipe needs to be thawed, you can use a powerful household hair dryer)

To apply this method, you must:

• construct a “sleeve” over a frozen pipe with a dense fabric or film. The sleeve must be closed on one side
• On the other hand, it is necessary to direct the supply of hot air with a hairdryer into the sleeve. After some time, not immediately – the pipes will warm up.

The recommendations given in this publication for thawing frozen water pipes are suitable for pipes made of various materials. The main thing is to remember and follow the safety rules and act promptly.