InspectAPedia ^®

• When, where, how, and why to turn off water in a building to avoid freeze damage or simply to shut down a building that is not in use
• When should we turn off water at a building? What else needs to be turned off, drained, or protected against freezing?
• How to winterize pipes: frost protection for plumbing systems
• Use of heat tapes, heat sources, pipe routing, to prevent freezing pipes
• How to de-winterize a building and restore it to service: check for & fix leaks, set up water equipment.

The articles at this website will answer most questions about freeze protection for piping and other building plumbing and heating system components: how to winterize a building to avoid frozen pipes, and how to thaw frozen water supply & drain piping, wells, & water tanks.

Guide to Turning off Water to a Winterized Building

A building owner who is unfamiliar with the plumbing and heating equipment in their building may be understandably intimidated by the maze of pipes, valves, switches, and controls such as those shown at the top of this page.

While there are building winterizing professionals who will be glad to come by to help protect your building from freeze damage and related water leak damage (when the frozen burst pipes and fixtures thaw out), it's pretty easy to understand what's needed.

Is the building heat going to be left "on" or "off" - the answer determines the extent of freeze-proofing needed.

• If heat is to be left on in a partially winterized building see the procedure at: Winterize - Heat On (continuing below)
• If heat is to be turned off and the building completely winterized, see the procedure at: Winterize- Heat Off

The procedures we discuss in this article series address both "heat on" and "heat off " building shut-down procedures that are useful both in freezing climates and in warmer locales.

Guide to Deciding to Turn Off All or Just Some Water Supply Valves

When is it Not OK to turn off water in a winterized building: But if the building is heated by a system that requires water, such as a steam boiler or a hot water (hydronic) heating boiler, turning off the building water supply can risk serious damage or total destruction to the heating boiler or even unsafe conditions.

That's because most heating systems that use water rely on the presence of an automatic water feed valve to assure that makeup water is sent into the heating boiler whenever its water level drops below a safe level.

What can we do to protect a building from frozen burst pipes and later flooding if heat is provided by a hot water heating system?

1. Go ahead and turn off the water: some hydronic heating boilers do not normally consume water; on occasion we see that the building winterizing procedure has included simply "taking a chance" and turning off the water.
   
   If you know the boiler's behavior well and know that there are no leaks in the hot water heating system you might feel that the risk of boiler damage due to running out of water is low.
   
   Of course should a leak in the heating system develop when no one is at home, the boiler can be damaged, ruined, or the loss of heat (when the boiler stops working) can cause other freeze damage.
2. Turn off all water into the building except for a dedicated water supply line feeding the heating boiler: we prefer this solution.
   
   You may need to ask a plumber to make a small adjustment to the water supply piping, to provide a direct water feed line to the heating boiler, but with the installation of a main water shutoff valve that will shut off all other water supply piping in the building.
   
   Certainly if the building uses steam heat (which always consumes or loses some water during normal operation) you will want to use this option.
3. Leave the main water supply valve on but turn off all other water supply shutoff valves in the building except for piping that feeds the heating boiler. Be sure that your water supply piping has been mapped carefully.
   
   Often one can simply install an additional shutoff valve or two to turn off all water other than piping feeding the heating boiler.
4. In the hot water heating boiler, use an anti-freeze mix intended for use in hot water heating system boilers (not a steam boiler, we're referring instead to hot water baseboard or hot water radiator heating systems).

See Water Feeder Valves, Hydronic Boiler and Low Water Cutoff Controls for more discussion of heating boiler water control valves.

What about leaving water running slowly to avoid frozen pipes. This is a last resort measure which we don't like. Not only are we wasting water, we risk flooding a septic system, or we risk freezing the building drain lines by the slow flow of water. In emergency however, such as loss of heat during a winter storm, this step could be necessary and would make sense.

Guide to Turning Off Other Plumbing Fixtures in a Winterized "Heat-On" Building

Before moving on to the other Heat-On winterizing Steps (Winterize Water Softener & Treatment Equip. and  Find & Fix Water Pipe Freeze-Up Points and  Heat tapes, Heat, Insulation prevent Freeze-Up and  Freeze Protect Drains) here are a few basic suggestions:

At FREEZE-PROOF A BUILDING we discussed property management basics like turning off and unplugging electrical items, notifying neighbors and insurance company, etc. You should also:

• Turn off water supply to outside faucets
• Turn off water supply in to the water heater
• Turn off the valves on the washing machine hot and cold water supply hoses
• Turn off water supply to humidifiers, ice makers, or similar equipment

These and similar individual water supply valve turn-offs that you may identify reduce the chances of a flood in an unattended building should an individual fixture or pipe break during the winter. Of course if you are turning the heat off for the winter, a different set of drain-down and other steps are needed, and are discussed beginning at
Winterize- Heat Off Procedure.

Use links just below or at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

FREEZE-PROOF A BUILDING
Key Winterizing Topics
How to Winterize a Building

Winterize - Heat On Procedure
  Thermostat Settings
  Turn Water Off ?
  Winterize Water Softener & Treatment Equip.
  Find & Fix Water Pipe Freeze-Up Points
  Heat tapes, Heat, Insulation prevent Freeze-Up
  Freeze Protect Drains

Winterize- Heat Off Procedure

De-Winterized a Building
  Thawing Frozen Pipes
  Repairing Burst Leaky Pipes
  Turning on Heating
  Restoring Drains
  Turning on Water
  Water Supply/Drain Pipe Leak Types
  Restoring Water Softener & Treatment Equip

Share this Article      

...

Technical Reviewers & References

Search InspectAPedia

• Daniel Friedman - principal author/editor of the InspectAPedia^® Website
• Critique, contributions wanted: Contact Us to suggest corrections or additions to articles at this website, and if you wish, to receive online listing and credit as a contributor. Particular thanks are due to the many experts and also consumers who read and critique technical articles at InspectAPedia.com.
• "New Electric Heat Tapes Help Prevent Fires," US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) #00936
• Thanks to Alan Carson and Bob Dunlop, Carson Dunlop, Associates, Toronto, for permission to use illustrations from their publication, The Illustrated Home which illustrates construction details and building components. Carson Dunlop provides home inspection education, publications, report writing materials, and home inspection services. Alan Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors.
• "Freezeproof Your House," Mike McClintock, Rodale's New Shelter, p. 30, October 1985 (approximate date)
• "How to Winterize Your Pipes," Mike McClintock, Homeowners How-To Magazine, p. 59-62, Nov-Dec 1979.
• Critique, contributions wanted: Contact Us to suggest text changes and additions and, if you wish, to receive online listing and credit for that contribution.

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

• Our recommended books about building design, inspection, and repair, and about indoor environment testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore.
• ...

More Information on Building Diagnostic Inspections and Repairs

• Clogged Drain Diagnosis: Is it a blocked drain or the septic system? - A First Step for Homeowners
• DRAIN NOISE DIAGNOSIS: may indicate defective or clogged plumbing: how to diagnose and cure drain sounds
• Guide to Heating Thermostats - how to install, adjust, set thermostats - avoid freezing pipes
• Heating Boiler Operation Details - 39 steps: keep the heat working to avoid freezing pipes
• Heat loss diagnosis: for hot water systems (boilers) and for warm air systems (furnaces)
• HOT WATER HEATERS - a detailed guide to all types of hot water sources, problems, inspection, repair
• Water Pressure Loss - Diagnosis how to determine why water pressure has been lost or why there is no water at all in a building

InspectAPedia® Home & Site Map - Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, Repair, & Problem Prevention Advice: In-depth research & advice on diagnosing, testing, correcting, & preventing building defects & indoor environmental hazards. Unbiased information, no conflicts of interest.

The Mold Information Center: What to Do About Mold in Buildings, When and How to Inspect for Mold, Clean Up Mold, or Avoid Mold Problems

Use this simple, economical mold test kit by following our instructions on how to collect and mail mold samples to our lab

Environmental Inspection, Testing, & Diagnosis On-Site IAQ, Gas, Air Testing, Mold Investigation, Sick Building Diagnosis, Lab Services, & Remediation Plan Preparation - indoor air quality testing, problem source determination, supporting lab work, written remediation plan addressing removal of environmental and other hazards and prevention of their recurrence.

Building Inspection, Problem Diagnosis, Forensic Investigation & Testing, Repair Consulting

Contact Daniel Friedman for website content suggestions or for fee-paid consulting