With snow weather warnings sweeping across the US, it's estimated that over 22,000,000* people are currently under winter weather alerts. So, how do home experts prepare for snowy weather?
Here, they share their top tips on preparing your home for a snowstorm, from draining and disconnecting outdoor hoses to opening cabinets and attic doors.
The 3 Rules Home Experts Always Follow During Snow Weather Warnings
*According to the CNN Winter Weather Warnings Advisories Tracker.
1. Drain and Disconnect Any Outdoor Hoses
The one rule that Josh Mitchell, HVAC expert and founder of AirConditionerLab, always follows when snow is in the forecast has to do with maintaining a garden hose and stopping pipes from freezing.
'I drain and disconnect any outdoor hoses,' he shares. 'If you leave a garden hose attached, the water in the pipe can freeze right behind the spigot, causing it to burst.
'You won’t notice until it thaws, and by then, you might have water running down the inside of your wall. It takes less than a minute to do and avoids hundreds of dollars in drywall and plumbing repairs.'
To do so yourself, Josh recommends using a solid brass hose splitter with shutoff valves, such as a Garden Hose Splitter available at Amazon, which lets you turn off water easily, without having to crawl behind anything or reach through landscaping.
2. Open Cabinets and Attic Doors to Allow Pipes to Stay Warm
Next, Travis Hargrave from Hargrave's Plumbing says that the one rule he always follows during snow weather warnings is opening cabinets – a clever way to keep kitchens warm without heating – and attic doors.
'Letting warm air into cabinets and attics offers more thermal protection to at-risk plumbing piping,' he explains. 'To follow yourself, first we have homeowners open their cabinets to allow warm interior air to heat their pipes.
'Once completed, we suggest opening your attic access slightly. This helps to protect any piping in your attic.'
For further protection, you should also insulate pipes in your attic space. Using foam pipe covers, available at Amazon, is the quickest and easiest way to do so. It's also advisable to insulate any crawl spaces, too.
3. Check Vents for Obstructions
Finally, says Eli Zimmer, CEO of Luxaire HVAC Services, the one rule he always follows when there are snowy weather warnings is checking all of his vents, as neglecting to do so is a home maintenance mistake never to make in winter.
'I literally just go around to all of my vents in each room and check each one,' he advises. 'I want to make sure that every single vent in my home is open and not obstructed.
'Even if you don’t mean to, sometimes things like shoes, or blankets, or pillows can accidentally get pushed or somehow find their way over to the top of a floor vent, blocking that warm air flow.
'Making sure that every single vent is open and nothing is blocking the warm air coming out is crucial for not just keeping the home comfortable but also making sure your heating system doesn’t have to work extra hard to keep things at the temperature you’ve set since there’s an obstruction.'
Therefore, this simple task will also help to cut energy bills, by avoiding any heating system mistakes.
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All prices were correct at the time of publication.
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Meet the Experts
'These are five-minute tasks that stop way bigger problems,' says Josh. 'People skip them because they don’t seem urgent, but they quickly become expensive when ignored.'
It's also vital to avoid these heating mistakes making your house colder.
