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How To Thaw Frozen Pipes

Plumbing Emergencies

Caution: Please read our safety information before attempting any testing, maintenance or repairs. Some equipment may rely on a cold water supply and suffer damage without it.

Frozen pipes burst because as water freezes, it expands. With enough expansion, pipes will develop cracks. The cracks may not be visible but they will leak nonetheless when the ice melts. Prevention is the best policy, but if you are reading this, then that warning may come too late. For prevention measures, follow this link.

When trying to thaw a frozen pipe there are just a few steps to follow. Locate the frozen pipe and turn off the water supply to this pipe before proceeding. If there is no water at any of the taps in the house, the main water line may be frozen somewhere between the meter and where the water line enters the house. If there is no water for only one part of the house, then the frozen pipe is probably in an exterior wall or uninsulated crawl space or basement. If the pipe is accessible, inspect it visually and by feeling the pipe for any cracks or splits. If you find damage, you may be want to get repair materials ready before thawing the pipe. If the pipe is not accessible, read on for techniques to deal hard or impossible to reach pipes.

Next open the nearest tap down stream from this pipe. This will allow water to drain out as the ice melts and will tell you when you have succeeded in warming the pipe.

How you heat the pipe depends upon the type of pipe and the location. But in all cases start nearest the tap and work outward.

Plastic pipes

Accessible pipes can be heated with a hair dryer. Keep the dryer moving and do not focus it on any one place too long.

Hot wet rags can be used to heat pipes. Simply immerse a rag in hot water (about 105 degrees F) and wrap it around the pipe. Replace the rag when it cools.

A grounded, water resistant heating pad can be wrapped around the pipe and set to the lowest heat setting.

Metal pipes

While a flame can be used to heat accessible copper or steel pipes, it is not recommended to use a direct flame on any pipe as this increases the risk of damage to the pipe as well as presenting a fire risk. Never heat the pipe any warmer than you can comfortably tolerate holding the pipe bare handed and always use a flame spreader to diffuse the flame. Never use a flame on plastic pipe.

Accessible pipes can be heated with a hair dryer. Keep the dryer moving and do not focus it on any one place too long.

Hot wet rags can be used to heat pipes. Simply immerse a rag in hot water and wrap it around the pipe. If you are able to catch water from under the pipe, you can go a step further by pouring hot (not boiling) water over the rags.

A grounded, water resistant heating pad can be wrapped around the pipe and set to the lowest heat setting.

Inaccessible pipes

Frozen water pipes located in inaccessible locations can be warmed by raising the ambient temperature. In cases where the pipe is located in an exterior facing wall, open cabinets  to allow warm interior air to warm the cabinet and wall. Locating pipes may require a little detective work. First consider, most pipes travel through walls in the most direct route to get to the room they service. The water lines are likely to be near the rooms they service. Raising the indoor temperature will increase the temperature in all rooms and help heat pipes in exterior walls. But direct application of heat where the pipes run will speed the process even more.

You may place a heat lamp or portable heater facing the wall to warm it. Before using a heat source remove any combustible materials and follow all manufacturers safety warnings about how close it may be placed to the wall or other obstruction. In the absence of other warnings, place the heat source no closer than 18 inches from the wall or obstruction.

Heating this way will take time, but it does work.