Yeah this is how you freeze your pipes.

What?

Good tips!

If there is no water in the pipes, what feeezes?

[deleted]

Important note: Don't try the main shutoff for the first time in 10 years the morning you leave on vacation.

You need a flow of water to prevent freezing. The trickle part is great, the shutting off the main is terrible.

You can’t just open a single faucet and be done. You need to open up at least 2, and preferably at different elevations with one being lower than most of your water pipes.

What this commenter is saying (I assume) is that shutting off the supply, and then opening just one faucet, you potentially trap whatever water is “below” that open faucet. Without moving water, those pipes can more easily burst when frozen. It won’t flood while you’re gone, but it can still freeze and then flood when you turn it back on.

What OP is trying to quickly describe is to empty your houses water lines completely before leaving. Then, with empty pipes there’s nothing to freeze. But not every house is the same, and in a somewhat typical 2 story house with a basement, shutting off the supply and then opening a faucet in the 1st or 2nd floor will leave the pipes in the basement (where it is coldest) full of water. It’s possible that the water freezing will expand up the empty pipe, and not “out” to burst them, but that’s not a guarantee.

Also, if you have water lines that feed a garden hose, which are not frost proof, those could very easily freeze and are almost certainly below a first floor faucet.

This is somewhat reckless advice as it’s incomplete.

No, you need a properly insulated and plumbed house (no pipes in exterior walls or unconditioned spaces) to prevent freezing. A trickle of water is advice for warm climates that might occasionally see freezing temperatures, it's a coping mechanism for a poorly designed system.

wyze cam in your basement pointed at the floor. done.

If you do turn off the water main, make sure you turn your water heater off

Great observation, Cycling your main water valve several times a year is a good idea.

When you turn the water back on do it slowly to avoid washing sediment or debris through lines into faucets.

…and a plan to do something about it right ? Which would be to do what OP originally suggested and shut off the water. You would need to monitor the feed and then get someone with access to your place to shut it off before everything is ruined, otherwise you have the same situation, but your holiday is also ruined through the knowledge that your belongings are being destroyed.

Meh,,, 30 bucks at lowes and a little mess in a closet.

Lol... yes, shut off water heaters!

Better yet, open the valve (bathtub or utility sink with no screen are best) at the lowest level of the house, turn on the water and let the sediment get stirred up and flushed out.

So when you see that your house is flooding you... do something about it?

You can get IoT water sensors that will actually alert you if there's a leak (rather than needing to check a camera).

Never had this problem have left the house for 8 months at a time in winter. Granted the coldest it gets here in Key west is 60F.

Should I turn off the heat on the hot water heater too?

• You are asking about a project that someone else did.
• You are not asking a question relating to something DIY.
• You are not asking a question at all.
• You are submitting a "DIY Tips" or "Tricks" post.
• You are trying to submit a survey / fundraiser.
• You are asking what an item is called - try /r/whatisthisthing.
• /r/DIY allows only two types of posts - finished projects & help requests.
• If your submission is neither of these - it will be removed.

Please read our guidelines before resubmitting.

If you believe this was a mistake, please message the moderators.

This is exactly what I meant. Thank you for elucidating.

<thumbs up>

You can put it on vacation mode but I never do and it’s fine.

This is just going to let you see your place as it floods. Much like security cameras don’t do anything but watch as someone breaks into your home.

Yes the water left in the pipes may freeze and because you have it off and you opened a faucet the freezing water can expand and not be trapped therefore won’t bust your pipes.

I think your good on the not freezing part.

Not unless you’ll be gone for 6 months.