How to Drain A Water Line
Even though it isn’t something you have to do often, draining your home’s plumbing system is necessary at times. You may need to fix a water hammer problem, or even replace or extend the main plumbing lines in your home.
The most common reason homeowners need to drain their water lines is to prepare for harsh winter weather. With winter weather approaching in Michigan and all over the country, now is a good time to learn these helpful techniques to avoid costly plumbing repairs.
If you’re wondering how to drain your pipes for the winter, the team at Lenox Plumbing has put together an easy-to-follow guide. Carefully follow these instructions to save yourself headaches and costly home repairs down the line.
Instructions:
- Find the main water shutoff valve. It may be located inside or outside of your house. If you cannot locate the main source yourself, give a trusted plumber a call for professional guidance.
- Drain the pipes of water. Turn on every water fixture in the house until the water stops running. Drain all water outside of the house by attaching a hose to a sill cock or basement faucet.
- Open all faucets and flush all toilets in the house, starting with the top floor and working your way down. Remove the toilet tank cover and continue flushing until all of the water has drained out.
- Force the water out. Use an air compressor to force any remaining water out of the pipes. Starting on the top floor, apply bursts of air to the main drains for several seconds each.
- Drain appliances. Turn on the dishwasher and allow it to run until clear water drains from the line. Run both hot and cold water through the washing machine to flush out all the water lines. Open the shut-off valve beneath each toilet to allow compressed air to blow out water for a few seconds each, then close the valve.
- Extra Protection: Pour antifreeze into all sink and bathtub drains. Add a small amount of antifreeze to each toilet tank.
- When you are ready to use the water again, turn on the main water valve and let each fixture run until the pipes are full.
To refill your water pipes, you’ll basically need to follow the above steps in reverse.
Refilling the Plumbing with Water
- Start with closing the faucets on the lowest floor of your home.
- Next, close all upper faucets. Doing so will allow air to be retained within the pipes. The air will recharge the system’s air chambers.
- Now you can turn on your home’s main water supply at the valve. This will allow water to flow back into the pipes.
- Turn on all the faucets. Start with the faucets on the highest floor of your home and work your way down. As you turn on each faucet, let air and water sputter out.
- At first, discolored water may come out. This is common and nothing to worry about.
- Proceed to open the tub and shower faucets.
- Next, flush all the toilets and allow the tanks to refill.
- Once the water runs clear, you can turn off every faucet. Start by turning off the faucets beginning with the highest floors of your home and work your way down. You might experience occasional sputter when using the faucet again, but the remaining air in the system will be purged quickly.
Important Reminders:
During extremely cold weather, let your bathtub and sink faucets drip or drain your pipes to help prevent pipes from bursting.
Also, if you’ll be leaving your home unattended for an extended period of time during the winter, try using plastic wrap or wadded-up towels to seal off toilet bowls and block drains. Otherwise, any water standing in your sink and toilet drains may evaporate. As the water evaporates, it may remove the sealant on the drain that keeps sewer line gasses from rising into your home.
Lenox Plumbing Can Help
By following the steps mentioned above, your home’s plumbing system will be good to go for winter. Avoid the headache of frozen and damaged pipes by taking the time to proactively prepare for cooler temperatures.
As always, if you’re not sure where to start when it comes to draining your home’s water line or you simply aren’t interested in doing it yourself, give us a call. At Lenox, we offer many kinds of water drain pipe plumbing services that most likely include what you’re looking for.
We’re here to help you solve your problem as soon as possible. Give us a call today to schedule an appointment!
