NC Cooperative Extension Service

Our mission is to help people improve the quality of their lives through
research-based information and informal educational opportunities focused on issues and needs.


Master Gardenersm Column for the Week of December 20, 2004
Charlie Spencer
Brunswick County Extension Master Gardenersm Volunteer

WINTERIZE PIPES SOON—AVOID SPRINGTIME TROUBLES

Homeowners should winterize outdoor pipes and lawn sprinklers soon. A few precautions now can save a lot of time and headaches later. Freezing temperatures can cause the water in an exposed pipe to expand. If the water expands too much, the pipe bursts.

With home irrigation systems, you probably wouldn't know you had any pipe damage until you turned it on for the first spring watering. Most in-ground sprinkler pipes will be OK. Only the top inch or so of the ground may freeze in southeast North Carolina. Pipes should be well below this level. Other irrigation components, such as backflow-prevention valves, are at ground level though, and could be in danger.

If there are any exposed valves or pipes around your home, it is a good idea to tape them up or use a good old sack to wrap them. Home improvement stores have many tapes, foams, and gadgets to keep these pipes warm on cold winter nights. The tips of sprinkler heads can hold water. When frozen, they can rupture. The whole sprinkler system holds water, too, even when it isn't being used. Don't forget to drain the system. If you don't drain it properly in the winter, your sprinkler could be a geyser when you turn it on next spring. Arrangements should have been made in the installation process to have a way to drain those lines that would hold water through a buried valve in a pit. If you've bought a home with an installed irrigation system, locate this drain valve and drain the lines. Some systems are equipped with automatic drain valves.

Don't forget about outside water hoses. You can do two things:

If you leave hoses undrained outside in the winter, don't move them or touch them in freezing weather. You could be the one to break them. Frozen hoses are fragile.

Private water users and rural residents with wells should check out their main water pump. Usually a quarter-inch pipe connects to the pressure switch. If it's metal, it likely won’t freeze. But if it's plastic, it might freeze and burst. This could cause the water pump to fail or continue to run and cause some major winter repairs.

If all these precautions fail and a pipe bursts, there's still one thing to remember and that’s to know where the main cutoff is located and how to shut it off!

Send your gardening questions or comments to: Brunswick County Master Gardener Column, P.O. Box 109, Bolivia, NC 28422, or call (910) 253-2610. Enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope if requesting information or a reply. Answers may be printed in this column.

North Carolina State University and North Carolina A&T State University commit themselves to positive action to secure equal opportunity regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, religion, sex, age, or disability. In addition, the two Universities welcome all persons without regard to sexual orientation. North Carolina State University, North Carolina A&T State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments cooperating.

For further information or assistance, please e-mail:
Charlie Spencer, Brunswick County Extension Master GardenersmVolunteer

Back to the Master Gardenersm News Column Page of the Brunswick County Center of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service.

Back to the Home Page of the Brunswick County Center of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service.

This site is maintained by Kathy Walters.
URL Address: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/brunswick/
Date Created 12/15/2004