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bodhipooh t1_j77umsw wrote

This thread is reminding me of a situation with my best friend, who moved away several years ago but still had a property in BK he was trying to sell. A real estate agent that was showing the house had left a window open to keep the place aired out (so it wouldn't smell stale during showings) and forgot to close it before winter rolled around and, during a serious cold snap, the pipes on the second floor froze, burst, and the place got flooded. Homeownership can be a bitch at times.

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BeMadTV t1_j7811cb wrote

Curious, who was on the hook for repairs??? Did insurance cover that??

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bodhipooh t1_j78a1ol wrote

TBH, I never got into the details of how it all worked out in the end. In my mind, the real estate agent/agency should be responsible, but I am pretty sure they would simply deny they left a window open and it could have been done by anyone that visited during a showing. From what I recall, he paid for the repairs to expedite everything and I am assuming (hoping?) he submitted everything to his homeowners insurance for reimbursement. He was DESPERATE to unload the house as they had already moved away down south. Luckily for him, he was able to do so in late 2018 and his accountant then suggested that they refile several years of taxes to claim retroactive losses. I do remember him doing that and getting some chunk of cash from the IRS. That was a win. In his own words, if he knew then what he knows now, he wouldn't have bought the property, in spite of the overall gains after 10 years of ownership. When all is said and done, he cleared 100K in net gains after all the usual and unexpected expenses of homeownership. In his own words, for those 10 years they were "house rich, cash poor" and looking back the 10K / year gain (on average) doesn't feel like it was worth it.

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BeMadTV t1_j78mgp0 wrote

Oh wow...sounds like a roller coaster ride. Seems to have sorta kinda worked out in the end. But it's all perspective I guess, and what times we're living in. Thanks for sharing!

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The_Nomadic_Nerd t1_j782up9 wrote

Do you know where the freeze is? Is there any part of the pipe that’s exposed outside? A part of my pipes that are exposed outside froze in December. I took a pot of warm water and poured it over the exposed part of the pipe. Repeated a few times and it thawed.

Then I went to a hardware store and got a heat cable to wrap around the pipe. I then covered it in pipe insulation. It seemed to handle the cold weather we have.

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Fair-Procedure-5257 OP t1_j7963cr wrote

Unfortunately I do not have much accessible exposed pipe to work with. Tomorrow I’ll likely do that after hunting any exposed pipe down.

Thanks for your reply

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BeMadTV t1_j77kh62 wrote

Your landlord is probably looking for threads like these.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Landlord/comments/lla42b/landlord_us_ks_frozen_pipes_what_to_do/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

Did you leave it dripping? Not trying to victim blame, just curious. Speaks to how cold it is and how insulated the building is.

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OtherBarry3 t1_j77oq86 wrote

> Did you leave it dripping?

That same thread you linked has multiple people pointing out that dripping the the faucet will still lead to frozen pipes.

Sounds like that would help with preventing the pipes from bursting but hopefully OP does not have that issue (I guess they'll know one the water isn't frozen anymore).

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BeMadTV t1_j77pjrs wrote

Yeah, I saw those. I've never still had frozen pipes. I feel like that would happen if you let it drip and never turned them on and used them. Just dripping.

They also mentioned it being really cold and dripping not helping. But again, I feel like you'd have to not use your water for a while, just drip, to get to that point.

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Really feel bad for OP, I wonder what the LL's on this sub would do or think.

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Fair-Procedure-5257 OP t1_j77wsao wrote

Appreciate the help y’all. Didn’t drip but will never forget not to going forwards haha

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BeMadTV t1_j782ml1 wrote

Most of life is learning through experience though. And if you switch cities, climates, or even countries, you have to do it all over again lol

My first apartment I didn't drip and didn't have pipes freeze. It was the top floor of a house in Greenville. $800 a month. Two other units below me.

My second one in a ten unit building on 15th Street by Cast Iron Lofts froze. It was Reason #136 I like having a car.

I have a house now in Bergen Lafayette, let it drip and left the basement at 65 and when I used it for the first time I heard a sputter before it started. It's cold.

I ramble all this to say...it sucks now, but a good memory to keep for the whole age and wisdom thing later. Tomorrow is 50. Leave the cabinets open today for room temp to hit. Could take hours. Hope your LL gets back to you. I would get a good book and a hot toddy/hot boba at your favorite bar/bubble tea spot.

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DontBeEvil1 t1_j7a6m4n wrote

Dripping has always stopped my pipes from freezing. They're not doing it right.

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pixel_of_moral_decay t1_j79pgi4 wrote

You're conflating a few thing.

Leaving it dripping will prevent ruptured pipes by not letting pressure build up.

You can however still get some ice buildup, which might result in water not running. But since water has a place to go as it expands it won't cause a rupture.

Leaving the plumbing dripping is to prevent catastrophic damage, not to keep water pressure working normally.

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Jctexan t1_j795tam wrote

Open kitchen cabinets if they are against an exterior wall - will help to keep it warm inside there!

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GhostOfRobertTreat t1_j79daam wrote

More information would be helpful. Are you renting a whole house? One unit in a two unit building? Do other units have water? Are both the kitchen and bath faucets not working?

When our pipes froze, I could tell it happened somewhere between the kitchen and upstairs bathroom. Used a heat gun on the tile along the wall. It eventually thawed. Lucky it didn’t burst.

To thaw the pipes you need to warm them up. Open cabinets under the sink and bath vanity. If you have a space heater or can borrow it, use it next to the wall closet to where you think the pipes are frozen. Keep the taps open when doing this so you’ll know if it’s working.

If you use a heat gun, don’t keep it pointed at a painted surface. It will bubble and strip the paint.

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Minute_Kangaroo_1576 t1_j79wxft wrote

This used to happen to us a lot I forgot what my landlord did to fix it but as a preventative whenever it would get below freezing we would leave the water on just slightly so it wouldn’t freeze and be left with no water.

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Fair-Procedure-5257 OP t1_j7b8t90 wrote

Hey everyone. I’m back in action. Just want to thank everyone for all of the advice and links, etc. appreciate you all taking the time to write.

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DontBeEvil1 t1_j7a6hrc wrote

What do you mean, Landlord unresponsive. Call the Housing Department.

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Kevg1968 t1_j7bcud1 wrote

Do not underestimate broken pipe theory, when they unfreeze is when it leaks ! So be vigilant if you leave and it leaks

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mad_dog_94 t1_j79yc1g wrote

in the future when it gets this cold its a good idea to let the water drip from your faucet even when youre not using it. it isnt a guarantee but it helps long enough to keep them from bursting due to freeze so they can thaw

as for your landlord. you can withhold rent until they come and fix the issue. if they want to take you to court then they wont have a case because theyre responsible for the property and it wasnt you who damaged it

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