Wheat Ridge, CO, can spend much of the winter season below freezing. In fact, 16 degrees Fahrenheit is the average low temperature in January. Plus, it’s reached a frigid -25 degrees Fahrenheit three times since 1963. In other words, it’s important to winterize your plumbing each year. Whether you’re going to spend the winter in Arizona or will merely be gone for a couple of days, taking care to winterize your home can help keep it safe. For this reason, our expert plumbers at Fox Heating, Cooling & Plumbing can assist you as you take steps to ensure your plumbing is fully winterized.
Why Should You Winterize Your Plumbing?
There are two critical reasons homeowners need to winterize their plumbing: preventing burst pipes and protecting a vacant home. It also comes in handy if you deal with an extended power outage. For example, wind gusts up to 82 mph caused power outages in March 2025 to almost 19,000 people in the local area. Many homeowners found themselves without power to operate appliances and without heat to maintain their comfort.
The most likely problem that local homeowners can face from a power outage is a burst pipe. Water always expands as it freezes. The resulting pressure might cause your pipe or pipes to burst. On extremely cold days, even people who have power might keep their bathtub faucets slightly turned on to help prevent frozen pipes. When you consider the fact that 3,000 gallons of water can be lost annually in a single home with a leaky faucet, though, it becomes clear that you’ll need another solution.
When you leave your home for vacation or for the entire winter, it’s vital to take steps to keep your house safe. Winterizing is the best way to ensure your pipes don’t burst. Arriving home in the spring to discover a burst pipe has flooded your home will be a nightmare. Aside from the expense of cleaning up the water and getting a pipe replacement, you also have the risk of exposure to mold and mildew.
8 Key Steps to Winterizing Your Home
Now that we’ve shown you why you need to winterize your Wheat Ridge home plumbing, we’ll take a closer look at how winterization is achieved. Our professional team offers regular preventative maintenance for your plumbing system, including winterizing your home. Don’t leave your home empty for more than a day or two without winterizing your home.
1. Shut Down Your Main Water Supply
Make sure your main water supply has been shut off before leaving town. This will prevent any new water from getting into your pipes, which will keep them from freezing and bursting.
2. Drain Your Plumbing System
Once your main water supply is shut off, it’s time to move to draining your plumbing system. To do this, start on the highest level of your house. Turn on every faucet in your home from the top floor to the ground floor. Any water that remains in your system will drain out.
3. Empty Water-Using Appliances
After shutting down your main water supply and draining your plumbing system, it’s important to ensure your water-using appliances are also completely drained of water. To do so, run appliances such as your washing machine and dishwasher on an empty cycle. If any water remains, it’ll be flushed out of your plumbing system.
4. Disconnect All Outdoor Hoses
Garden hoses that are connected to your house through outside spigots also need to be disconnected and drained. If you fail to do this, your plumbing system will still be at risk.
5. All Exterior Water Sources Should Be Shut Off
Outdoor faucets, also referred to as hose bibs, should all be shut off. To ensure these faucets have purged all their water, leave the faucets open. This will remove any residual water and protect your plumbing.
6. Insulate Your Pipes
Any exposed pipes that run through unheated areas need to be wrapped with foam insulation. Don’t forget to check your crawl spaces, attic, and basement for exposed pipes.
7. Seal All Air Leaks
You’ll want to have any openings or cracks sealed with expandable foam or caulk. Otherwise, you’ll be giving cold air a chance to reach and affect your pipes.
8. Use an Air Compressor
This step is technically optional, but what’s the point of completing the previous seven steps only to skip the last one? Especially when this method will ensure your pipes are completely dry. Blow compressed air into your pipes via an air compressor to make sure water is not left in your plumbing system.
What if We’re Expecting a Mild Winter?
Temperatures in Wheat Ridge will occasionally reach the 50s during winter. With increasing climate change, what’s the best course of action for a mild winter? Well, the first thing to do is winterize your pipes before leaving. That’s because wintertime can be unpredictable, and there could still be periods when temperatures dip below freezing. In fact, if it drops below 32 degrees Fahrenheit for just a couple of days, your pipes could freeze.
We recommend that you winterize your home every single year before an extreme cold snap or when you leave for the season. That way, you’ll never get hit with an unexpected and expensive repair.
Which Pipe Materials Are Safest for Winter?
When it’s time to have your pipes replaced, be sure to ask us about PEX piping. Although these pipes aren’t a 100% guarantee, they have a much lower risk of bursting. This is because PEX pipes are specifically built to contract and expand. Therefore, they’ll probably be able to withstand the typical contraction and expansion that leads to burst pipes.
What About Frozen Water Lines?
We’ve spent a lot of time informing you about burst pipes, but there is another risk. Your water line can become frozen, leading to either a trickle or no water at all. As if this problem wasn’t enough on its own, you’ll also have to contend with an increased risk of burst pipes as a result.
If you happen to be at home when your water line starts to freeze, you can use an electric hair dryer to fix the problem. However, if you’re unable to find the specific area where your problems come from, contact our professional plumbers. They can isolate your issue quickly and will take immediate steps to resolve it.
Reliable Plumbing From Fox Heating, Cooling & Plumbing
We offer comprehensive plumbing services that range from slab leaks to water heaters. Our plumbing legacy started more than 20 years ago. Since then, we’ve been honored with an A rating from the Better Business Bureau. Our plumbing knowledge has been passed down through several generations. However, we’ve modernized it with innovations that include sustainable technology and high efficiency.
Let us protect your plumbing system by providing timely repairs, regular preventative maintenance, drain cleaning, and replacements.
Are you looking to winterize your home in Colorado? Call our professional team at Fox Heating, Cooling & Plumbing.
