Scottish Water urges householders to protect their property and pipes during cold snap
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WITH sub-zero temperatures forecast over the next few days, people in Scotland are being reminded to protect their homes.
As temperatures are set to drop, Scottish Water have issued a reminder to property owners to prepare for the very cold weather, which could help prevent problems such as burst pipes and flooding and save on unwanted expense for damage repair.
As the possibility of cold weather increases, the utility has advised anyone with a home, holiday home or business premises to take action to protect their properties and pipes, whether the property is old or new.
Kevin Roy, Scottish Water’s Customer Service General Manager, said: “Water pipes can be very vulnerable to swings in temperature and the freeze-thaw process. With a return to freezing overnight conditions and slightly warmer temperatures during the day, we are preparing for a potentially busy period.
“As we saw in December, burst pipes – especially those which the customer has responsibility for - can place additional strain on our supply systems as well as cause disruption. We would want all householders and businesses to prepare and be alert for any bursts which do occur.
“We are putting a range of resources in place to allow us to deal with issues which arise – but prevention in the first place is always a better option.”
The key advice from Scottish Water is to heat, insulate and protect pipes.
Modern central heating systems have frost-protection built in, which will fire up the boiler and heat pipes if needed. For homes without built in frost-protection, Scottish Water recommend setting the heating thermostat to 10C and the programmer to On or 24hr which will prevent frozen pipes.
Making sure pipes are properly insulated will also stop them from freezing.
Pipes can also be protected by making sure to check homes regularly for any problems.
Scottish Water also added that if anyone has a vacant property during such cold weather, they should turn off their water supply and drain the system
Visit www.scottishwater.co.uk/winter or www.yourwateryourlife.co.uk/winter/ for further advice, information and films.
