A combination of strong winds, blowing snow, and a wintry mix of precipitation in Lincoln over the weekend will continue into next week, bringing temperatures down to between -20 and -35 degrees. A local HVAC specialist is offering advice on keeping homes warm and avoiding emergency service calls.
Thad Burch is a senior lead technician for John Henry’s Plumbing, Heating, Air, and Electrical. He first said there are several precautions he recommends for residents to avoid a frozen plumbing disaster.
If you have a history of your pipes freezing:
- Set faucets to a trickle of both hot and cold water to keep things moving.
- Periodically flush toilets
- Open up cabinets under sinks to allow access to warm room-air
- Consider running space heaters in crawl spaces or attics if there are waterlines running through there
“Moving water typically will not freeze. Still water will freeze. So keep that stuff moving,” said Burch. “Simple steps like that can really go a long way.”
Shifting focus to heating, Burch offered expert tips on optimizing your home’s system as temperatures drop to dangerous levels.
“The main goal is to keep you comfortable, but the higher you’re setting your temperature in your home, the harder your unit is going to run,” he said. “If you can handle backing off a couple degrees when it’s extremely cold, it won’t make that unit run quite as hard.”
Lower the temperature slightly when you’re away from home, but not so low that pipes could freeze
It could seem simple, but replacing your air filter can make an impact on the function of your heating system.
“If the filter is getting restricted or getting plugged, that will make the unit run extremely hard. If it is severely plugged, that can cause short cycling, and those furnaces won’t be able to keep up. Or it could stress enough to cause a component to fail,” he said.
If you notice some rooms don’t seem to retain warmth the same as others, managing any drafty windows or doors could make a huge difference.
“If your windows are getting moisture buildup on them, that’s usually a sign that that window is leaking. if you start getting ice or frost on a couple windows, usually that’s a sign that those windows are faulty and you’d want to reach out to somebody to get those replaced,” Burch said. “Make sure good weathering stripping is on the doors going around to keep air from bleeding in through there.”
The age of your home is also a factor.
“A lot of homes have rooms that are just cold, even when you replace the windows and seal up the doors. If it’s an older home or even if it’s newer, maybe the insulation just isn’t up-to-par,” he said, recommending a call an insulation company who can use a thermal camera inspect any heat loss. “Tackling those problems will make the whole home a lot more efficient.”
Window coverings, carpeting, and rugs can also bolster a room’s ability to insulate heat.
“Having carpeting, is like having end caps at the end of the basement floor. That will help less heat escape through the cold floor, plus when you’re walking barefoot, that keeps your toes from being cold.
When all else fails, many residents will turn to small plug-in space heaters to provide a quick and easy source of heat.
“Space heaters can be a life saving device, but they can also be dangerous. They’re great for keeping your home warm if you need to get your furnace repaired or replaced. But I always tell customers, don’t run more than two in a home or don’t overload one circuit because that can cause breakers to trip,” Burch added.
Never leave your home with a space heater running, “not even for 10 minutes. They could tip over, a pet or kid could knock it over, cords can get hot, and now we could have a fire hazard. So anyone in Lincoln using running space heaters over these frigid days to come, just make sure we’re at home supervising them and don’t leave them unattended.”
Even with a cold snap around the corner, Burch recommends making an HVAC maintenance appointment as soon as possible if your system isn’t up to snuff.
“Its always proactive to have an expert come out just make sure everything’s clean, make sure sensors are clean, make sure motors aren’t stressed. Just a once over to make sure everything is running properly and efficiently. Its also smart to have your carbon monoxide levels checked, just make sure no furnaces are running dangerous,” he said. “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”