What to do if…
you suspect your pipes are starting to freeze and the taps are slowing or sputtering

What to do now

1. Find the main water shutoff and make sure you can reach it.
   It is often where the water service line enters the home, such as a basement, utility room, garage, crawlspace access area, or exterior-wall area. In an apartment or condo, it may be in a building utility area; contact building maintenance if you cannot access it.

2. Open the faucet with the weakest flow.
   Open both the hot and cold sides slightly if it is a mixer faucet. Keep it open while you warm the pipe so water and pressure can move as ice melts.

3. Check other faucets quickly.
   If only one faucet is slow, the freeze may be near that branch line. If several faucets are slow or dry, the frozen area may be closer to where the water line enters the home.

4. Look for active leaking before you thaw.
   Check under sinks, behind toilets, around basement or crawlspace pipes, in the garage, near outside-wall plumbing, and below ceilings under bathrooms. If you see active leaking or water spreading, shut off the main water valve.

5. Warm the likely frozen area slowly.
   Use warm air from an electric hair dryer, an electric heating pad, or towels soaked in hot water. Start near the faucet end of the pipe and work back toward the colder area. Keep electrical items dry and keep space heaters away from anything that can burn.

6. Warm the space around the pipe.
   Open cabinet doors under sinks, keep interior doors open, close garage doors if plumbing runs through the garage, and raise the indoor temperature enough to help warm exterior-wall or cabinet pipes.

7. Stay nearby and watch as flow returns.
   As water begins moving again, check pipe joints, walls, floors, and ceilings for drips or bulges. Put towels or a shallow pan under suspicious joints if you can do so safely.

8. If you shut off the main, reopen it slowly only after you are ready to watch for leaks.
   Turn it partway, pause, listen, and look. If water appears where it should not, shut it off again and call a plumber.

9. Call a licensed plumber if the frozen section is hidden, you cannot reach it safely, thawing does not restore flow, or you suspect a split pipe.
   Say: “I suspect a frozen line. The taps are slowing or sputtering. The main shutoff is located and is currently on or off.”

10. If water is near outlets, appliances, cords, or the breaker panel, keep away from the water.
    Only shut off power if you can do it from a dry place without stepping into or reaching over water. Otherwise, stay clear and call for emergency help.