Tips to make sure your home is ready for the freezing temperatures

RICHMOND, VA (WWBT) - Nobody wants to deal with frozen pipes, burst pipes, and broken heaters when winter weather strikes. But plenty of people do.

And with more winter weather on the way, experts have tips for preventing those headaches.

They say checking your home to make sure it's ready for the cold weather takes less than an hour, but could save you hundreds of dollars in damages. They say you can start by checking the heating unit.

Clearing the snow from the heating unit is one of easiest things technicians at BREMAC Heating, Cooling and Plumbing say homeowners can do as the freezing temperatures settle in. For 24 hours, employees have been responding to broken heaters. Now they're sharing easy tips that could prevent another mishap. That includes clearing the snow from around and under your heating unit as well.

"It won't get stuck on the bottom of the cabinet and cause a big ice dam," said Everett Williamson, the service manager at BREMAC. "It could actually ruin the unit. It could actually punch a hole in the core and let the refrigerant out. You could actually ruin the unit which could cost anywhere from $3,000 up just to replace one outdoor unit."

Plumbers say pipes will freeze over and burst if these steps aren't taken.

"A lot of times with cold weather what we'll recommend people doing is just simply opening the cabinet door, letting heat from the house get into the pipes," said David Trexler, a plumber with BREMAC. He also says to let the water drip throughout the night as well. "It doesn't have to be much, no more than a steady drip keeps the water moving," he said.

Another thing experts say you can do is to take a lighter and put it next to the lining of a window or a door, if the flame flickers that means there's a draft. Other tips: disconnect garden hoses and close crawl space vents and put some weather stripping around your doors and windows.

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