SUMMARY:
For some homeowners in the greater Charleston, SC area, Christmas celebrations were overshadowed by plumbing issues caused by freezing temperatures. The hard freeze that took place just before Christmas Day 2022 was an example of a rare occurrence in the Lowcountry, and one that many property owners in our area fail to adequately plan for. Unfortunately, many families were out of town for the holidays and did not discover flooding, property damage, and cracked pipes until they returned home. Rooter-Man of South Carolina continues to respond to service requests related to frozen pipes and advises homeowners to take measures to protect against future hard freezes.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Leading into the Christmas weekend holiday last month, numerous public service announcements and news outlets notified local home and business owners in the Charleston, SC region that temperatures would drop to abnormal levels. Due to the infrequency of “hard freezes” in the region, many plumbing systems are not protected against them and require specific measures on the part of property owners to keep them from being damaged.
Unfortunately, the hard freeze at the end of 2022 came at the worst possible time for many homeowners in the region. If they were away from home for the holidays, people were unable to monitor the condition of their plumbing during the weather event. Even worse, the damage caused by frozen and cracking pipes in many cases went for days without being detected until families returned home several days later.
Rooter-Man of South Carolina, a prominent Charleston plumber, anticipated pipe damage in their service area and was ready to respond over the holiday weekend. As of Monday morning, December 26th, the company had received more than 150 calls for urgent plumbing service and was working to book appointments in as timely a manner as possible. Even after January 1st, calls continued to come in as property owners discovered leaks, slow running water faucets, discolored/dirty water, and other indications that pipes had been cracked by expanding ice during the hard freeze.
In the wake of this most recent low temperature event, Rooter-Man SC points out that those homeowners that inspected their pipes and took special action to protect them in most cases escaped without damage. The best measures that non-professional plumbers can take are to insulate pipes exposed to the outside air, leave at least one faucet dripping overnight (or even throughout a multi-day trip away from home), or shut off the water supply to the house altogether to avoid having water freeze inside the pipes.
While the event is fresh in everyone’s minds and the possibility remains for more hard freezes this winter, Rooter-Man of SC advises property owners to insulate pipes and keep an eye on the weather forecast in order to be ready for cold temperatures. It is also a great idea to have plumbing inspected as soon as possible by the best plumbers in Charleston, SC to determine whether pipes were damaged or weakened by freezing water.
