Frozen pipes in the Winter are no fun. To prevent this you should take the steps shown in this tutorial. Some of the things you will need are; foam pipe insulation, lamp, electric tape, extension cord, and a light bulb.



1) Your bathroom and kitchen are of course the first places to apply your work against frozen pipes. They are not only under the sinks and the tub, they are in the walls. Remember that if you live in the North, that the north side of the home will be most vulnerable.




2) Pipes that are in the walls of the home may have closets on the other side of the wall. Open the doors to the closets and let warmth in. This may help to prevent the pipes freezing in the wall.



3) Pipes that are under the house and in garages are most susceptible to freezing. In this section of the home you need special precautions. You should buy foam jackets for the pipes in these locations. Use some good tape if you do not want to have to keep re-taping the pipes. Metal tape is very strong and is high quality. Duct tape can be good, but is a temporary fix. The foam around the pipes is split and you will need to close this split after installing it around the pipes. Use the tape to do this.





4) If you do not or can not use foam tape, use a lamp. A heat lamp is not a necessity in this case. An extension cord, lamp and light bulb will work well. Use a one hundred watt bulb in the lamp. Place it under the pipes you want to protect if they are under the house or out in the garage.




5) If you have extreme cold conditions and extended times of temperatures below freezing consider the next step. Use electrical tape. It has an electrical heating element in the length of the tape. You plug it in after curling it around your pipes that you think may freeze. This is the quality thing to do with your pipes. If the electrical tape does not come with its own adhesive, you will need tape to make it a permanent fixture on your pipes.