What Winter Storm Uri taught, the faucet covers and sprinkler draining to do first, and which pipe material survives a hard freeze.
Texas plumbing is not built for a hard freeze, and every few years that becomes everybody's problem at the same time.
Snowmageddon 2021 was recorded during Winter Storm Uri while it was still happening: the grid down, water out, pipes bursting across the state and propane gone from the shelves. It is the show's rawest hour and it is still the best argument for doing the small things in November.
The freeze damage episode is the post mortem, recorded with plumbers after the next hard freeze. The verdict on materials was direct: CPVC and PVC break easiest, copper is next, old galvanized tends to weep rather than split, and PEX is the most resilient, with PEX Type A the expandable kind. It also covers why a pipe running through an exterior wall is a decision somebody made years before you moved in, and financing a repair bill that arrives with no warning.
The prevention list is the winter preparations episode: outdoor faucet covers, draining the sprinkler system, cleaning gutters, a chimney sweep, storing lawn equipment and checking the fire extinguisher. Ryan Burke of Burke Family Plumbing covers winterizing sprinklers properly, including the backflow anti siphon valve people forget. And the January freeze episode is the well owner's version, walking through the wellhead, the pump and the pressurized holding tank after a pipe up there froze.
The week of February 14, 2021 will be a week that will live in infamy in Texas history. With power outages, water outages, burst pipes, sub-zero temperatures, a 133 car pile-up on I-20 in Fort Worth, and oh yeah, a LOT of snow - this week will not soon be forgotten.
In this enlightening episode of our homeowner show, join our host, Craig Williams, as he navigates the implications of Texas' recent massive freeze on local homes and businesses. Full of crucial tips and expert opinions on handling home repairs, this episode is a must for DIY enthusiasts and homeowners looking for professional repair assistance.
That Time We Talked About Winter Preparations In this episode Craig and Kevin give you their top 10 things you should do to prepare your home for the winter months. Inevitably, if you’re like most people, you wait to prepare for winter until you see on the forecast that it’s going to be cold the next day.
In this episode Craig and Kevin interview Ryan Burke from Burke Family Plumbing. We felt this episode could’ve been a lot longer because there was so much to cover!
Trip Report and Commercial Real Estate Shocker In this episode Craig and Kevin talk about the recent freeze in Houston and give a trip report on Craig’s trip to Branson. But, the most shocking part of the conversation is our stats we’re going to discuss regarding the commercial real estate state.
The winter preparations episode is a list: cover the outdoor faucets, drain the sprinkler system, clean the gutters, get the chimney swept, put the lawn equipment away and check the fire extinguisher. Ryan Burke adds the sprinkler detail that gets skipped, which is the backflow anti siphon valve.
On the freeze damage episode the plumbers in the room ranked it out loud. CPVC and PVC break the easiest, copper is next, old galvanized tends to develop a drip rather than split, and PEX came out as the most resilient, with PEX Type A being the expandable version.
Because there is less house between them and the cold. The freeze damage episode covers exactly that, and makes the point that the pipe in the exterior wall was a routing decision made when the house was built rather than anything the current owner did.
The January freeze episode is the one to hear. Kevin woke up with no water, walked through the anatomy of a well on air, the pump at the bottom, the pipe up to the wellhead and the pressurized holding tank that feeds the house, and found the freeze in the run above ground.
There is a lot more where that came from.
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