A common suggestion to protect your home from damage during cold weather is to drip faucets. This ensures pipes won’t freeze, burst and leave you with flooding or water damage.
While North Texas is seeing slightly warmer daytime temperatures following the winter storm, nights are still expected to drop below freezing.
So, should you still be dripping your faucets?
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D-FW Weather Wise
What to know
According to the National Weather Service, the low temperatures in Dallas-Fort Worth are expected to stay above freezing starting Monday.
While the nighttime temperatures remain below freezing, it is best practice to drip faucets, particularly if you don’t have power, according to Environment Texas Research and Policy Center.
Tips for dripping faucets, protecting pipesIf you have access to power and heat, it is okay not to drip your faucets as long as you open cabinet doors where pipes are located to let warm air in.If you have no power or are still worried about bursting pipes, start dripping when temperatures hit 32 degrees or below.A slow, steady drip, about one drop every few seconds, should be enough. Focus on faucets connected to exterior pipes or those farthest from where water enters your home. If you’re worried about wasting water, catch it in a container to reuse for plants, cleaning, or other needs.Remove garden hoses from outside faucets and insulate them with styrofoam covers. Make sure to drain the pipes beforehand.
Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesperson Jason Evans said the department expects more burst pipe calls as things begin to thaw. He said officials have a plan in place for those incidents, though no more details have been publicly released.