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Houston-area officials offer conflicting guidance on faucets during a freeze – Houston Public Media

Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune

To drip, or not to drip, that is the question on many Houston-area residents’ minds as the region prepares for the anticipated hard freeze and potential historic snowfall.

Ahead of the winter storm — expected to hit late Monday evening into early Tuesday — Harris County and City of Houston officials provided conflicting advice. County officials recommended that residents leave their pipes dripping to prevent water from freezing inside them, which could cause the pipes to burst when they thaw, while city officials warned that dripping faucets could cause citywide water pressure issues.

Chato Woodard, a local plumbers union representative, said leaving faucets to drip can prevent freezing.

“Of course, everybody kind of argues about it — running water, not running water,” he said. “I’m a big proponent of letting that water drip if you’re not using it. You use it typically during the day — you wash your hands, go to the restroom, get a drink of water from there. But at night, for a long period of time, typically you don’t run water.”

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However, Houston Mayor John Whitmire and a Houston Public Works official said over the weekend that dipping faucets across the city could cause pressure to drop in the city’s water system.

“We discourage the leaking of your pipes because it affects water pressure for fire suppression, but wrap your pipes if at all possible,” Whitmire said. “And then, of course, you can drip them if you have no other recourse.”

The mayor’s message on frozen pipe prevention was reiterated by Houston Public Works Director Rand Macchi, who said dripping faucets could cause further stress on an already delicate water system.

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“The reality of the situation is on the best of days in the City of Houston — and the mayor has done a tremendous job of documenting this over the last year — our system is fragile,” he said. “There’s still more than 1,00 active water main leaks across the city, so the strain on the pressure that the system can deliver is significant.”

Instead of dripping faucets, Macchi recommended that city residents leave the cabinet doors open below the sink to allow warm air to circulate around water pipes.

“Take the precautions that you can,” he said. “Wrap your pipes on the exterior. Make sure that you open underneath your cabinets so there can be some warm air that gets in there. Generally don’t expect there to be major catastrophes if (residents take) as much precaution as you can.”

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For homeowners, Macchi said it is also important to know how to turn the water off to your house in the event of a water leak.

“Part of that’s also understanding what’s going on at your home,” he said. “Make sure you know where your shutoff valve is. If for some reason your home doesn’t have one, (or) you can’t get to it to shut the water off, be sure to call us and we’ll help you to take care of that part of it.”

If the city’s water pressure gets too low, Macchi said the city could be forced to issue a boil water notice.


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