Winterising an empty property

fishpond

I have a property in the Midlands that is very likely to remain empty for the winter months.
Besides turning of the water supply outside the property  is there anything else that needs to be done (storage tank fed), to reduce the risk of frost damage.
A friend suggested draining  all the water down.
Another friend suggested this may cause problems with pipe joints/taps in the Spring when water is de-isolated.
Thank you in anticipation of your answers

Alter_ego

Better a few problems when deisolating than a flood you find out about when you return.

davidmcn

Draining down is standard practice - merely turning the supply off only reduces the amount of water damage if a burst happens. And/or leave heating on at a temperature which will keep everything above freezing.

macman

If left without any form of heating or ventilation then the property is likely to get damp. What is the heating system?

fishpond

Gas central heating---I am unlikely/unwilling  to leave this running.

greatcrested

Will you/anyone be visiting?

Best advice is to leave heating set very low so it only comes on to prevent frost/freezing

If not, drain everything down including all rads.

But the key is to read your insurance policy. Likely to be invalid if property is left unoccupied for more than 30 (or 45, 60) days. Contact the insurer - they may insist on

* draing down and/or

* heating and/or

& weekly/monthly visits (keep a record!)

* some other action

kinger101

As greatcrested suggests, you really need to check what your insurance company expects.  If it is for a prolonged period, they may not cover at all, which means you'll need a specialist policy.

If it is a full drain down, then it should really be blown out with compressed air too.  The spring problems tend to come when residual water not drained out freezes and damages pipes.  Homeowner finds out when the water is switched back on.

If you are draining down, you'll also need to put an antifreeze in the toilet U-bend.  

giraffe69

Not sure why the reluctance to leave the heating on low. If the radiators are set to come on to avoid any frost damage then no burst pipes when you return. Best, obviously if all the pipes are properly lagged also. If all the heating is off and drained down etc then when you return it will not only be an aggravation to set it all up again but the house will remain cold for quite some time.

greatcrested

kinger101 said:

If you are draining down, you'll also need to put an antifreeze in the toilet U-bend.  

Wow never heard that before but makes sense!

Thrugelmir

fishpond said:

Gas central heating---I am unlikely/unwilling  to leave this running.

Then your insurance is unlikely to pay out in the event of an incident. 

Unicorn_cottage

fishpond said:

Gas central heating---I am unlikely/unwilling  to leave this running.

Why?