Hay All! During our current freeze here in Charlotte, NC ( I manage an apt. complex)
sever copper supply lines in unheated attached shed storage burst. The piping supplies washers. There is a mixture of piping materials in the sheds some all copper, somes pex, and others a combination of both . To date the pex and/pex /copper hasn’t burst (I hope). Question: of the possible piping I could use which would be tolerant of a freeze? Also, is there any way to replunb with some sort of expansion. fitting?
Thanks
Replies
The pex is it!
fittings might burst but the pex will stand a freeze
Excellence is its own reward!
insulating your pipes will help also
I live north of you (NY) where we've been frozen since November. I have a property where he well house is heated with a light bulb. The bulb is on a thermostatic switch. When the temp gets down to 40 or so, the bulb turns on. The housing is well insulted, and it keeps a 4'X4'X6' enclosure heated even when it's -10 out.
If the pipes are contained in a small area, it might be cheaper to buy a couple sheets of foam board, a can of "great stuff" expanding foam, and a lightbulb/thermostat set up.
If you're freeze ups are really infrequent, invest in some heat tape (also comes with thermostat).