The forecast for next week starting Saturday, 2/6/21, is for severe freezing weather to arrive and stay for an extended time. Every year CORSA members experience losses due to frozen pipes and the water damage it causes. These losses can and have exceeded $1,000,000! The following are several steps that can be taken to mitigate the risk of frozen pipes: Step 1: How to drain your pipes First things first: Get the water in your pipes out! To do that, you'll want to tackle all the water lines exposed to the freezing temperatures. After you shut off the water valves, open the spigots to let any remaining water drip out. Step 2: Insulate exposed piping Ideally, your water pipes should be kept in heated spaces only. Although this is the best-case scenario, each facility layout is different. Generally, you'll want to watch out for any pipes in unheated or uninsulated areas, like attics, basements, or crawl space. Any piping located in areas that could go below freezing should be insulated with insulation sleeves or wrapping. Step 3: Open accessible doors Once you reach that time of year when freezing temperatures are the norm, even your indoor pipes may need some extra protection. And one easy way to do that is to open any accessible doors that house plumbing. The improved airflow keeps your pipes toastier than if they were shut. Step 4: Let it drip, drip, drip Another pipe-saving tip: When temperatures drop to below freezing, let your faucets drip. Yes, this advice opposes almost everything else you know about water conservation, but it can save you big bucks on fixing that busted pipe. The Red Cross concurs that running water through the pipe-even at a trickle-helps prevent pipes from freezing. Letting cold water drip from the faucet helps relieve any pressure building from ice inside a pipe. Step 5: Shut off the water completely During periods of facility unuse, you'll want to take the extra measure to turn off your building's water completely. Unused water sitting in pipes is likely to freeze. Why take the risk? James Hale, ARM-P, ARM-E, CPSI Risk Control Consultant County Risk Sharing Authority 209 East State Street Columbus, OH 43215 614.246.1630 FAX 614.220.0209 " The leader in providing Ohio Counties with exceptional value, service, and protection of assets." CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: This e-mail message (including any attachments) is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain confidential and/or privileged material. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy this message and all attachments.