Pipe between our well and house froze last night and the spigot directly at the well isn't working either. I already turned off the hot water heater. Any other advice until they thaw out? Should I turn off the well pump too?

1/5/2018 9:03:12 AM

Get a bunch of those chemical heat hand warmers and drop them down into the well

1/5/2018 9:21:31 AM

Thoughts and prayers

1/5/2018 9:38:08 AM

https://www.lowes.com/search?searchTerm=heat+tape

1/5/2018 9:43:36 AM

why do you need to heat hot water

1/5/2018 10:24:06 AM

I wouldn't shut off the pump unless you're worried about the pipe busting while you're not home. I doubt that it froze below ground, so I would suggest putting a heat gun on the above ground pipes at the pump house and reestablishing flow. It won't take much if you get on it soon. As soon as it breaks through, the water from underground will thaw the rest very quickly.

1/5/2018 11:24:37 AM

It's wasteful, but I leave a faucet trickling all night at these when it stays super cold for several days like this.

1/5/2018 11:25:46 AM

yeah i always leave a faucet dripping when temps are like this, but i'm also in a pretty old house that has had issues with pipes freezing in the past.

1/5/2018 11:56:45 AM

heat trace all the pipes in the pump house and heat trace where it comes into the house. the box for the heat trace usually has diagrams for how to wrap pipes, valves, tees etc. then you just throw on some insulation and never have to worry about it. if you have a utility outlet already in your pump house it's easy to do and you don't need an electrician, go to lowes and buy the stuff elwood linked.

1/5/2018 2:10:14 PM

I just use a heat lamp. Easier to confirm that it's working.

1/5/2018 2:15:18 PM

but that's a lot less efficient, and aren't you worried about fires from having a heat lamp running without keeping an eye on it?

1/5/2018 2:18:31 PM

Heat tape can also cause fires

1/5/2018 2:39:49 PM

really? i thought that stuff was really safe when installed correctly and properly insulated

1/5/2018 2:59:37 PM

So is a damn light bulb

1/5/2018 3:11:18 PM

not really, they can fall or break or overheat something adjacent

heat tape is used in all kinds of commercial, industrial and residential applications and as long as it is paired with appropriate insulation i've never heard of it being an issue, hell i've even used heat trace in class 1 div 1 applications

[Edited on January 5, 2018 at 3:41 PM. Reason : ,]

1/5/2018 3:31:01 PM

In my neighborhood pretty much all the furnace drain pipes freeze up where they stick out from the exterior wall. Then the HVAC shuts off when the water backs up all the way to the attic. Luckily it only takes like 1-2 minutes of slowing pouring REALLY hot water onto the exterior section of pipe to break up the ice a little, then the water pressure of a 20+ ft column of water flushes the rest of the ice out.

1/5/2018 3:42:58 PM

no, i'm not worried about a heat lamp starting a fire in my pump house

1/5/2018 5:35:58 PM

All my electrical equipment is explosion proof in my pumphouse

1/5/2018 6:50:41 PM

my backflow preventer is in a separate hot box with no room for a heat lamp. haven't had any issues with it, but with the insanely low temps predicted tonight and tomorrow night, i did add some heat trace and cerawool to it.

1/5/2018 7:16:15 PM

I thought this thread was about some new lesbian punk rock band.

1/5/2018 7:17:27 PM