Winterizing Checklist

Rising fuel costs have made reducing heating costs a top priority for homeowners. Winterizing homes that will be vacant for an extended period presents a huge opportunity to enhance your business. How can you offer this service while guaranteeing the home's plumbing will not suffer any freeze damage? A few simple steps will ensure that snowbirds or vacation homeowners return to a home where winterized plumbing will be their least concern.

Water lines travel throughout homes in concealed spaces such as walls, under floors or above ceilings. There's no way to determine if lines droop to form low spots that pool water or if an offset exists to trap water that can split water lines. Repeated freeze/thaw cycles will cause metallic lines to bulge, which can make repairs difficult, if not impossible, due to the increased outside diameter. Most homeowner insurance policies will cover damage from frozen water lines, if proper maintenance has been performed, but they typically will not cover the costs for the actual plumbing repairs.

Top Down
"My father's vacation home, which is next door to our own, was plumbed with all of the lines having fall back to the main shut off valve," says Mark Eatherton, a mechanical contractor and Colorado Rocky Mountains vacation homeowner. "Winterizing is an easy task performed by shutting off the water and gravity-draining from the top down. My home, on the other hand, is not quite as easy and I utilize a wet/dry vacuum to forcibly evacuate the lines. All plumbing traps receive a dose of environmentally-friendly Sierra anti-freeze and all traps, including the water closet bowl, are covered with saran wrap to prevent evaporation of the contents, which would permit sewer gases to enter the homes."

Using compressed air or a vacuum to evacuate water to protect water lines might not be adequate under all conditions. As a result, you may want to consider an approach that is virtually iron-clad and grants you the ability to offer a warranty. Work that carries a warranty has an increased value and you should charge accordingly.

While insulating water lines can retard the progression of freezing, you can rest assured prolonged exposure eventually will result in damage. Heat tapes are another source for protection, but many can't be safely overlapped or covered with insulation.

Anti-Freeze a Home
Winterizing any residence starts with a complete survey of all devices connected to the plumbing system. Don't forget outside hose bibs and removal of any attached hoses. Next, you'll need the following items: a clean 5-gallon bucket; several gallons of RV antifreeze (protects to -50 F if used full strength); a utility pump; extension cord; and two washing machine hoses. (RV antifreeze is non-toxic and rated for use in potable water lines. During the survey, inspect water closets to ensure they were flushed last time they were used. If a whirlpool tub is in the mix, that's the first fixture to tackle. Turn on its blower to eject water that may have settled in the air lines. Using the utility pump, inject enough of the RV antifreeze to fill the pump and lines below the jet outlets. Any antifreeze that runs out and into the tub can be rinsed away.

Turn off the water main, either inside the building (which may require a short heat tape for its protection and/or the addition of a drain valve), at the curb-box or in the meter pit. Remove the washing machine's water supply hoses and let them drain into your bucket. Briefly turn on the warm cycle to open the solenoid valve and let that drain by gravity. Pour about 1/2-pint of the antifreeze into the washing machine and turn the control dial to its pump-out setting. The discharged antifreeze will protect the plumbing trap.

Fill the bucket with a gallon or two of the RV antifreeze, hook up both hoses to the utility pump and attach the discharge hose to the cold side valve. Activate the pump and open the cold valve to begin pressurizing the system. Traveling throughout the home, quickly activate each fixture until you see the pink antifreeze solution. For the water closets, simply depress the float until you see the pink solution entering the tank (don't flush). Either dismantle the ice-maker line or activate the harvest cycle until pink water flows into the ice tray (make sure all involved know to throw away the first batches of ice once activated again). Open the drain valve where the water enters the building and bleed off water till pink runs there too. Repeat this exercise with the hot water valve for all fixtures and remember to turn on the dishwasher and activate its pump-out cycle.

Open the water heater's drain valve and (starting at the upper-most fixtures) open all faucets (including exterior hose bibs) and flush each water closet. The gravity drainage will evacuate the untreated water from the tank and by draining the system through the water heater, it too will be protected. Most heating systems in the United States are warm air, but don't forget to check if there's a humidifier attached that needs attention. Please note: Hydronic (water-based) heating systems require alternate methods for winterizing protection.

Frank Piranio of Selective Plumbing Company feels that this is by far the most professional and reliable method he's ever utilized for winterizing homes and added an expansion tank with automatic shut-off to protect the utility pump from dead-heading. "It works great," he says. "I especially appreciate not having to dismantle spray-hoses and treating the dishwasher, whirlpool and ice-makers is a breeze. I have a winterization system that grants both me and my customers peace of mind and fully expect this to become a nice addition to my growing business."