Originally Posted By: tig1
If you have a problem with freezing pipes, then wrap the pipe with heat tape and then cover that with pipe insulation. That will protect the pipe down to below zero.
It is a "problem" here once every 2-3 years.
Houston will be below freezing for almost 36 hours starting tomorrow morning, which is a long time here.
Most homes here have water service coming up out of the ground and entering the house on the outside of the house.
There is usually a 2-3 foot section of pipe that has no insulation at all, just a bare metal pipe.
Insulating the pipe allows the pipe to hold the heat within it better, increasing the amount of time it takes it to freeze.
Same reason some leave a faucet dripping, keeps "warmer" water flowing through the pipe, reducing the chance of freezing.
Me personally, I have foam insulation around outside exposed pipes for most cold nights, then when it is really cold (like the next 2 days) I take a shop light (an old school incandescent, not LED) and hang it from the spigot, wrap a towel around it, and cover it with a box. Temp stays in the mid 50's in there (have a remote thermometer I stuck in it last time) even in the mid 20's.
When I was a kid, my dad would turn the water off then drain all the pipes that run in the attic.