by George Vreeland Hill .

Member since:
March 15, 2007

Pipes Unfrozen And Water Is Back With No Damage.

January 16, 2009 05:27 PM EST (Updated: January 16, 2009 05:59 PM EST)

views: 144 | comments: 40

In my last article (this morning), I wrote about the pipes in my house being frozen.

I had no water and it was nineteen degrees below zero.

It was the coldest morning I have ever seen, and I have seen a lot of them here in New Hampshire.

After spending hours in the basement and buying a heater in the mean time, all to no avail, help arrived and I had water in about twenty minutes.

Well, he is a pro who knew a lot more than me.

He found the area where the freeze occurred, and a blow torch took care of the rest.

No broken pipes, leaks, cracks, or anything.

I was lucky.

Tonight it will be very cold again.

With my new heater all set to go and hair dryer in hand (I don't trust myself with a torch), I will be ready.

I will have the water running in the taps as well.

So it turned out well, but I still hate winter.

A friend sent me an email from australia and wrote about the warm summer weather there.

You can add jealous to my many moods of today.

Hope your day was better than mine.

If not, your probably in the North Pole.

George Vreeland Hill

Tags: winter, new hampshire, frozen pipes, cold, weather, george vreeland hill

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Comments: 40

Vivian P. Jan 16, 2009, 5:29pm EST

gald you got it taken care of

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Larry H. Jan 16, 2009, 5:31pm EST

glad your water working..

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J F. Jan 16, 2009, 5:33pm EST

You were lucky with that blow torch. Not a good idea, but glad you didn't have any mishaps.

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Teresa A. Jan 16, 2009, 5:35pm EST

Cold here too. I feel for ya!

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Elaine B. Jan 16, 2009, 5:37pm EST

Glad you got your pipes taken care of.
I'm surprise our pipes haven't froze yet. It is 5 degrees here in Northeast Ohio. It is so cold that many schools were close today.

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Gary (aka: William Pinn) J. Jan 16, 2009, 5:41pm EST

What the hell happed to global warming? LOL! Glad your pipes are OK.

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Chris E. Jan 16, 2009, 5:45pm EST

Glad there was no damage! Well you might consider a heat gun since you don't trust yourself with the blow torch. It may be a little faster then a blow dryer if it happens again. Stay warm!

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Princess Spanky Pants ~ The Real, Original, Heather T Jan 16, 2009, 5:50pm EST

Glad they were fixed! Make sure to leave the faucets running at a slow pace over night to keep them from re-freezing.

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N. L. D. Jan 16, 2009, 5:58pm EST

Glad to hear the crisis is over. Hope it doesn't happen again.

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Karen F. Jan 16, 2009, 6:00pm EST

That's great George. I am sure it was a real problem. I've been there before and it is not any fun. Have a great weekend.

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Dorothy H. Jan 16, 2009, 6:02pm EST

Glad your back in action!

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Wilhelmine Estabrook Jan 16, 2009, 6:23pm EST

Nineteen below zero? Why that's almost balmy compared to NB Canada weather. Which was 32 below here last night, 40 below in some areas.
Speaking of blow torches, a young man who lives three miles south of me tried to thaw pipes here on New years Day with a blow torch and burned his house down, making him and his wife and three small children instantly homeless.
If I recall correctly, when we had pipes freeze a few decades back, you could buy electric tape or coils that you wrapped around the pipes to keep them from freezing. All you needed was an electrical outlet. It didn't make the water really hot, but it kept the pipes from freezing. These were available in any hardware store.

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Laurie R. Jan 16, 2009, 6:41pm EST

Glad you got it fixed. I was going to suggest heat tape also. Works really well. Blow torches can be dangerous if you don't know what you are doing or are not careful. Glad you decided against that option for yourself. No offense meant.

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Jessie L. Jan 16, 2009, 7:04pm EST

Glad you got the frozen pipes taken care of without any damage. I also enjoy warmer weather, but the few years I didn't live in the Northeast I did miss the winter, so I could never move away permanently.

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Oxnard Oasis Jan 16, 2009, 7:06pm EST

Why do people live in conditions like that? It is an honest question. I can't see myself living anywhere but sunny California, where it is about 82 degrees right now.

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Kerrell g. Jan 16, 2009, 7:49pm EST

H O O R A Y !

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Debra C. Jan 16, 2009, 8:55pm EST

Glad you had no damage from this incident. I do envy you the cold, though. Seasons are a great way to keep the cycle of life in mind ... I miss not having them.

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Syn C. Jan 16, 2009, 9:13pm EST

Sorry to hear about your pipes being frozen. Yikes! It's been extremely cold here. We are talking about -50 with wind chill factored in. Looks like tomorrow it's going to warm up to 22 degrees! Whew...going to feel like a heat wave. :) Try to stay warm!

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Cindy B. Jan 16, 2009, 10:14pm EST

Good deal! =)

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Jennifer N. Jan 17, 2009, 1:15am EST

Wonderful news. I always worry that they will burst. Happened to a neighbor this month... water all over,....

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Debby C. Jan 17, 2009, 1:30am EST

glad to hear the pipes unthawed and no damage incurred...I'm with ya on the cold thing cause this winter is just a little bit more than I bargained for this year. I can't remember the last time I felt this cold unless it was walking to Jr. High across the parking lot of the stripmall behind our house that was across the street from the lake and an the expressway thus making it FREAKIN' cold to say the least, the other way was just as bad having to walk across a sky walk to cross the expressway and let me tell you there are always cars and trucks zooming down that road day and night being the only major expressway from western mi to eastern mi or Detroit! brrrrrr, try to stay warm George.

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Ariel Storm Jan 17, 2009, 5:41am EST

I'm glad they were fixed and nothing was broken.

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ashley a. Jan 17, 2009, 8:46am EST

:) im glad your water is back

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Amber C. Jan 18, 2009, 10:42am EST

You're funny. Yeah, a blow torch would be out of my realm as well. And seeing as how I don't own a hair dryer, I guess I would use the lighter I use to light a candle. lol

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Janell R. Jan 18, 2009, 12:00pm EST

I'm glad you got it taken care of.

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Ankica S. Jan 19, 2009, 4:15am EST

few days ago it was -17 here. Pipes werefrozen. I understand the trouble you were in.
we have sunny day today after few days of rain. I am glad your problem was resolved. But I wish you lot of luck with next-to-come days. Winter is not over yet.

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mary bryant Jan 20, 2009, 8:09am EST

It is very cold here too!

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DIANE D. Jan 20, 2009, 8:48am EST

So glad it is back on! It has been that cold here also, we open the cabinet doors under the sinks, and have heat tape on the pipes, we learned our from our mistakes last year!

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Kelly K. Jan 20, 2009, 10:51am EST

Yike, that's a big scare. Burst pipes are a big expense. I remember a couple years ago we had the opposite problem. The heat wouldn't go off and even though it was freezing outside, it was about 95 in our apartment. We had the doors and windows open & we were running around in shorts waiting for the tech to get there. I saw one of our neighbors pointing at our house so I know they thought we were nuts, LOL. It was horrible.

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