frozen pipes under floorboards

kevboy_telford

we currently have no hot water in the property and no cold downstairs. On the plus side we still have heating and cold water upstairs.

we recently had a new boiler and the installers came out to make sure it wasnt the condensing pipe causing an issue. (which they fixed just in case!!)
However they told us that the pipe underneath the floor boards in the kitchen seem to be frozen (which is causing us not to have the downstairs water/ no hot water issue)
They also said that no plumber would come out to frozen pipes until they thawed.
So we are in waiting game hoping that there is a thaw soon or it can wait until boxing day!!

the question is - should we tell our insurers now or wait just in case they thaw out with no damage?
We are concerned that if we tell them they will ask us to turn the water off so we get nothing in the house....

Kevin

huckster

If you search online there are some very good plumbing forums where you might find tips to slowly thaw the pipes without damaging them. Can you lag them with some insulating material, so they are not affected by the cold floor below. In theory the lagging material should allow the thawing of the pipe slowly. Just my theory but worth giving it a go. What you don't want to do, is allow a sudden thawing, which could cause a burst.

If you tell your Insurers, I am not sure what advice that they might give. Being that they are not plumbing experts, I doubt they would give you any advice, other than to consult a plumber.

G_M

Tell your insurers what? There's no damage is there?

Sounds like your mains pipe. Cold feed to kitchen frozen. Cold OK upstairs because it's fed from the attic tank. But the attic tank will eventually empty, so use it sparingly!

Do you have access to the frozen pipes? Wrap them in whatever you can with hot water bottle(s) inside the insulation.

Try asking here for more.

Edit: If you're going away, the ABI has the following tips to protect your pipes:

• Ensure loft water pipes and water tanks are insulated.
• Know where your stopcock that turns off the incoming water supply is, and make sure it works.
• Ensure your home is still warm. If you are away for a long time it may be worth draining your cold water system.

If a pipe freezes:

• Thaw it out using gentle heat such as towels soaked in warm water or a hairdryer.
• Remove furniture and carpet (where practical) near to the frozen pipe.

If a pipe bursts:

• Turn off the water at the stopcock.
• Switch off the central heating to avoid further damage.
• Open all taps to drain the system.
• Contact your home insurer for advice.

kevboy_telford

the main pipe splits into two just after the stopcock (one going to the kitchen and the other going upstairs) and we dont have a water tank upstairs anymore
Unfortunately we dont have access to the frozen pipes - they are in the kitchen, which has full laminate flooring - so to get at the floor boards will mean ripping that up and I dont know the route that the pipes take (either through the middle or around the sides - and if its around the sides then I will have to go through the kitchen units....)

Every night we are turning the water off just in case... but we are not going anywhere this christmas

the reason I was going to ring the insurers was to inform them that we might be claiming in the near future (if it floods!)

Kevin

huckster

Could this this be another problem and not a frozen pipe?

Might be worth consulting another plumber.

If you have unlimited cold water upstairs, which is coming from the same main feed, this sounds a bit odd. If the main feed splits to provide water upstairs and downstairs, why has one frozen and the other not? I suppose one may be more exposed or is not lagged properly, but is there another explanation ?

Where is your boiler? Downstairs by the sounds of it.

kevboy_telford

Our boiler is at the back of the kitchen (which is at the rear of the house)
The reason for this set up is that the kitchen was an extension to the property so (from what I am told) they had to put a splitter on the water intake. Therefore the water going straight upstairs is ok and the one that goes under the house and into the kitchen (and ultimately into the boiler) is frozen.

kevin

G_M

Absolutley no point 'pre-warning' the insurers. What do you expect them to do?

But I'll tell you what they might do: log your call on their database which is shared with other insureres. Next year, you shop around for quotes and switch insurer. A week later, new insurer writes demanding an extra £100 'because our systems have noted an insurance 'event' that you failed to disclose when you applied"!

From what you say there's nothing you can do. Since you don't want to rip up the laminate/cupboards you can't access the frozn pipe so you'll just have o wait for the thaw and hope there's been no split in the pipe. The trouble is going to be knowing if there is a split. Will leaking water come up.....or just soak down invisibly?

huckster

If a plumber has advised the OP to wait, I suppose no other option.

Hopefully a slow thaw will happen and not cause a burst. If there is a burst and water does not come through the flooring, I would have thought the OP would notice the water coming back on, but at a severely reduced pressure level.