“Frozen Pipes” would be one such phrase that you would come across at the top of a listing of the most aggravating home repairs. Frozen pipes often lead to burst or broken pipes, which causes water leakage inside or under your house. This is also because the complications caused by burst or broken pipes can mean many consequences of water damage. These consequences eventually take their toll on the surrounding structural integrity or foundation of your home.
Now you might be wondering why this article is being published here instead of on your local plumber’s website. You can certainly find plenty of information online about how to winterize pipes or repair them yourself. However, you’ll probably come across little advice about what to do if your crawl space is exposed to the elements. A poorly insulated crawl space is just inviting trouble for your home during the colder months.
Insulating your pipes can be a great idea, especially for cold climate regions, whether your crawlspace is open or not. However, an open crawl space creates so much difficulty in regulating the temperature beneath your home that insulation for pipes is a must. This situation is different with a well and properly encapsulated crawl space. Do not forget, the cold air collected in an open crawl space also affects the temperature of the ground above it, creating some very cold toes!
During a traditional and professional crawl space encapsulation, a high quality and resistant foamboard is installed around the perimeter of the inside of the space. Any open vents allowing moisture to seep in are sealed off. This creates not only a moisture barrier but a thermal one as well, keeping the cold air out. Your crawl space will remain dry and conditioned.
A conditioned crawl space will hold your air ducts at the same temperature as you’ve set them to be. If your air ducts are outside the conditioned crawl space, the air under your home will still prove to be cooler than the surrounding outside air. Foam board insulation can help.
Taking an approach like the ones mentioned above can help any plumbing located in your crawl space rest comfortably through the fall and winter months without the worry of freezing. Your pipes will be protected from freezing temperatures, as will anything else in your crawl space. Improving the quality of the space underneath your home is just a phone call away. Give PIERMAN Foundation Repair a call today at (580) 453-0330 to schedule a professional evaluation.