It finally feels like winter in Austin. Cold weather is in the forecast for the week and could bring precipitation. Temperatures are expected to dip below freezing every night through Saturday.
Plumbing systems are susceptible to the cold in much of Texas. Water in pipes can freeze, expanding and putting pressure on plumbing. That buildup can cause pipes to burst.
Christopher Siebenthaler, owner of Redbud Plumbing in Austin, said he's been getting lots of calls about winter preparation.
" I'm dripping my faucets at night right now, just as a safety measure," he said.
Running water is less likely to freeze than still water. Keeping a consistent flow of water through the plumbing can help prevent it from freezing and bursting. That's why we drip. But Siebenthaler said temperature fluctuations, like the warmer daytimes we'll be seeing this week, will help thaw out the pipes and will prevent them from freezing in your walls.
" We were 70 degrees yesterday, and we wake up and it's 29 degrees," he said. "The ground temps are still warm. Everything doesn't freeze right away."
Fabian Pecina, manager at L&P Plumbing, said dripping both hot and cold water overnight is a good precaution.
" We recommend that homeowners drip at least one faucet in every bathroom and in the kitchen," he said. "A drop a second should be substantial."
Copper or galvanized pipes in older houses are more likely to burst when they freeze because the materials are brittle.
Pecina said although dripping pipes is a good precaution this week, he's not too worried.
"The weather has to be under freezing between four to six hours for water lines to freeze, which we're not anticipating right now," he said.
If there's no water coming out of your faucet and the temperature outside is below freezing, the water in the pipe could be frozen. Try taking a hairdryer to it - and only a hairdryer. A plumber KUT's Audrey McGlinchy spoke to last year said homeowners run the risk of melting a pipe or starting a fire with other devices. Here's what else they told her.
The City of Austin has winter weather preparedness tips available, including how to locate your water shutoff and how to thaw pipes after a freeze.