Protect your house from frozen water by draining the pipes.
Before you leave for a winter vacation, it is a good idea to drain your pipes. Without someone there to periodically run the water, the standing water in your pipes can freeze if the temperature drops. This frozen water can expand and burst your pipes. Burst pipes can be quite expensive to repair--more so if they also cause water damage. While this precaution takes a little time, it can save you from a huge problem.
Instructions
1. Turn off the water supply to your home's pipes by shutting off the main water valve. The water shut-off valve is likely to be located near your water meter. If you cannot find this valve, call your water department or a local plumber for help.
2. Turn on the hot and cold water taps in all of the faucets in your home.
3. Flush all of the toilets in the house until there is no water left pooled in the bowl. The open the shut-off valve (located beneath the toilet) on each toilet.
4. Use an air compressor to blow air through your pipes and force out any remaining water. Set the air compressor to blow at 70 pounds per square inch and use it to blow air through the faucet at the lowest point in your house (usually the basement faucet). Allow the air compressor to blow for 10 minutes.
5. Close all of the faucets once there is no more water coming out of them.
6. Close the toilet's shut-off valves.
7. Turn on the dishwasher for one cycle to clear the water from the drain line.
8. Run the washing machine for a hot and cold cycle to flush out the both pipes.
9. Drain the water from your hot water heater or boiler into a bucket and dump it outside.
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