Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Find a *smart* plumber if possible. That guy is probably working in the office doing paperwork though!
Plumbers tend to do everything like it has *always* been done - just because. Like placing the shower head at nose height! And running pipes in a location where they will freeze.
So why do kitchen sinks need to be on an outside wall? They don't! Things have just always been done that way. So move the kitchen sink to a center island or an inside wall. Just do a little thinking / redesigning and things can work better. But it takes someone who is smart and has a bit of ingenuity to come up with new and different designs.
So true, Billy!! Alas, a total redesign is not happening for us, but it's so true!
So the builder/contractor guy is coming over this evening - here's hoping he has some suggestions, since this horrible cold is sticking around through next week it seems. UGH. Remind me again why I live in MA??
So true, Billy!! Alas, a total redesign is not happening for us, but it's so true!
So the builder/contractor guy is coming over this evening - here's hoping he has some suggestions, since this horrible cold is sticking around through next week it seems. UGH. Remind me again why I live in MA??
Has it occurred to you that this contractor never fixed this problem while he was living in the house?
The pipes freezing isn't a new problem. People are lying when they say it never happened before.
Ok, really, who would live in a house for 15 years and not fix it if it happened all the time? Not to mention the people before us were in it for 20+ years? Why would we be the ones, in our first 6 months, to do something about it if it happened all the time?
Again, this didn't happen at all in December, even on the teens/20s days - it only has happened during this insane cold. But since the insane cold seems to be the new inter trend, I want this solved.
Ok, really, who would live in a house for 15 years and not fix it if it happened all the time? Not to mention the people before us were in it for 20+ years? Why would we be the ones, in our first 6 months, to do something about it if it happened all the time?
I moved in a yr ago and there are sooo many things where I've said to myself the exact same thing.
"Why didn't the previous owners fix this or that... How did they live with this problem, etc."
Well, I guess people adapt... or they were busy fixing other million things and never got to this one.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Billy_J
Find a *smart* plumber if possible. That guy is probably working in the office doing paperwork though!
Plumbers tend to do everything like it has *always* been done - just because. Like placing the shower head at nose height! And running pipes in a location where they will freeze.
So why do kitchen sinks need to be on an outside wall? They don't! Things have just always been done that way. So move the kitchen sink to a center island or an inside wall. Just do a little thinking / redesigning and things can work better. But it takes someone who is smart and has a bit of ingenuity to come up with new and different designs.
I wouldn't blame this all on the plumber. It's the designer, architect, builder, construction manager, etc. who says what goes where before the plumber showed up.... just to be fair.
People tend to like having a sink facing out the window. I think not having this layout is relatively 'new' ... I do agree.... why not avoid the problem to begin with by not putting plumbing in the outside walls.
Heh, true, mmyk! There are definitely a lot of little things like that, but this seems too big and costly (between the preventative measures of running water and turning the heat up and the possibility of burst pipes!) for two sets of couples to have ignore for 40 years! It's not like a squeaky door or a front step that needs repointing!
Ok, really, who would live in a house for 15 years and not fix it if it happened all the time? Not to mention the people before us were in it for 20+ years?
I've lived in my house for 22 years. My husband lived here before I married him. He has been here for 35 years. We have pipes that freeze in one of our bathrooms when temperatures drop near zero degrees. It doesn't happen often enough to bother us. We know how to thaw them on our own. Sometimes we talk about fixing them, but we forget about it by summer even though we know how to fix it on our own too. Some winters they don't freeze at all. Some winters they freeze a few times.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jmsca
Why would we be the ones, in our first 6 months, to do something about it if it happened all the time?
Because you're probably the first people who didn't know how to thaw them on your own.
We know how to thaw them on our own, but can't - we can't get to the pipe where it's happening thanks to cabinetry - trying to thaw through the cabinets doesn't work.
One thing you can check yourself is if there is cold air being blown in somewhere outside: a piece of wall removed, a chunk of plaster. With your cold snap it shows now when it didn't before. The wind blowing in increases the cold level and the freezing travels. There may also not be insulation in what is now an open space.
I had this happen once with a well house (new const.) in the Washington winter of '82. It was declared a snow disaster County (Whatcom) and the wind chill was coming in a small corner space the framer had left on the concrete slab. Covered/stuffed the corner and the problem was gone.
Local farmers were asking why I was burying the water and drain pipe six feet when they, for 80 years, had never had a problem burying at 30 inches. They had a problem that winter.
Thanks for the tip, thedwightguy! We'll have to take a walk around and see if we notice anything!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
