Please take necessary precautions to prevent your water meter and pipes from freezing temperatures this winter. Those located on outside walls, in basements or in crawl spaces are particularly vulnerable to the cold. They can easily freeze and break during very cold spells and lead to costly repairs.

Following these important steps below could help prevent expensive problems later.

Start Outdoors
• Turn off, disconnect and drain the garden hose connections and outside hose bibs.
• Close outside vents, crawl spaces and doors so cold air does not seep inside.
• Repair broken windows and seal any cracks in walls.
• Have your automatic lawn sprinkler system turned off and winterized.

Insulate
• Wrap water pipes that are vulnerable in commercially available insulation or heat tape that should be plugged in all winter. Cold air and
higher winds will penetrate any voids in the structure, insulate and seal.

Locate the Shut-off Valves
• Locate the valves on either side of the water meter and make sure they are accessible to turn off in an emergency. Use caution when
operating older valves they could break and become inoperable. You can label them so that others can find them quickly. Also valves are
located under most fixtures such as toilets and sinks.

Check the Heat
• If you are going away, maintain heat in the dwelling to help protect water pipes from freezing.
• If you plan to turn off the heat, drain all the water from the pipes, toilets, water heater, furnace and other water fixtures. Contact the
natural gas or oil supplier and your plumber to winterize your heating systems if needed.

More Tips for Freezing Weather
• If a sink is located on an outside wall, open cabinet doors to allow warmer air to reach the water pipes underneath.
• If you have had problems with frozen pipes in the past, keeping a trickle of water running from the nearest inside faucet may help.
During extremely cold weather, this trickle should be the size of a pencil point or larger. You will be billed for the water used but this
procedure may help prevent costly plumbing repairs resulting from broken pipes.
• In case of frozen pipes do not use an open flame such as a torch, this may cause a buildup of steam resulting in damage to pipes,
personal injury or a fire. You should contact a licensed plumber to assist with this issue.

Ramsey Water & Sewer Department