Published: January 14, 2009 10:36 am      

Experts urge homeowners to prepare for cold

Tips for residents to avoid damage to homes during cold weather

With extremely cold temperatures set to hit the area, experts are warning homeowners to take extra precautions to prevent damage from broken water pipes and ice accumulating on roofs.

Dale Klumpp, a plumber with Isley’s Plumbing and Heating, says he stays busy with burst pipes at this time of year — especially when temperatures get really cold.

“It tends to happen to everybody at the same time,” Klumpp said. “We try to get there in two to three hours, but that is more difficult when everybody is getting frozen.”

Thousands of people each year experience damage to floors, ceilings and personal possessions from broken water pipes. Experts say a crack as small as an eighth of an inch is capable of spewing out 250 gallons of water in a day.

Klumpp says there are several simple steps homeowners can follow to save thousands of dollars in repair costs.

“Leave the water running a little bit, let it drip hot and cold and keep the water running regularly,” Klumpp said “Also leave cabinet doors open. In kitchen sinks and bathrooms it helps to get the warm air to the pipes. On outside faucets remove hoses and any type of connection. The disconnects cause freezing, but removing them prevents this from happening.”

Klumpp said he has’t had many calls for burst pipes yet this week, but he expects to be busy in the next few days as the latest cold snap takes hold.

“We will tell people that we will get there when we can,” he said.

As well as burst pipes, insurance agents expect to be busy with claims for water damage to homes from a process known as ice damming.

Ice damming occurs after several days of freezing and thawing cycles and is common when gutters are frozen with ice or snow. Despite temperatures not reaching above 32 degrees, sunlight can still melt ice underneath a layer of snow on a roof. The water then has nowhere to go so but up under the roof shingles until it enters the attic, damaging ceilings, walls and contents of a home.

Pete Riggle, a State Farm Insurance agent based in Logansport, said ice damming was common throughout the Midwest despite not many people being aware of exactly what it is and how to prevent it.

“Multiple numbers of people report leaking roofs when there is in fact no damage to the outside,” Riggle said. “The damage is from ice damming. Water has a tendency to go to the lowest point that it can go which is through the roof into the attic. It is a really common thing.”

State Farm offers several tips for homeowners to prevent ice damming.

This includes cleaning leaves, sticks and other debris from gutters and down spouts, keeping snow off roofs, keeping downspouts and gutters clear of snow and icicles and evaluating the insulation and ventilation in attics.

State Farm recommends using long-handled roof rakes to clear roofs of heavy snow loads that may lead to ice damming.

Riggle said that damage from ice damming often goes undetected by homeowners until it becomes extensive, but he assured policyholders that any damage would be covered by insurance.

“Ice damming is covered because it is damage to the inside of the house and not the roof,” he said.

Kevin Smith can be contacted at (574) 732-5148 or via e-mail at kevin.smith@pharostribune.com



Cold weather tips

As well as regularly running hot and cold water and leaving cupboard doors open, State Farm Insurance offers the following tips to prevent freezing pipes:

* Insulate pipes in crawl space and attic.

* Use heat tape to wrap pipes.

* Seal leaks that allow cold air inside near where pipes are located.

* Close air vents under the house