Heating an empty home to prevent frozen pipes, damage, etc - timer settings?

lohr500

I would second Gerry1's suggestion to open the loft hatch or hatches.
 
From what you have described of the property it is likely to have header tanks for the hot water and central heating system and also more than likely the cold water.
 
The last thing you need is frozen pipes and header tanks in the loft.

Scot_39

Swipe said:

What_time_is_it said:

Sounds like we need to have the heating left on for longer than we currently have it anyway. The problem is that we won't be there until around midnight on Wednesday so we might have to cross our fingers for the next few days. Bit worried to be honest.

As long as you get there by midnight Wednesday I think you'll be fine. Wednesday night / Thursday morning will be the low point of the week. My bathroom often gets down to below 5C during cold spells and I've never had in internal pipe freeze, just the external garden outside tap pipe that goes through the bathroom wall and then it only freezes on the outside even when it's insulated. I now isolate it via the internal valve and open the tap. And even when the outside tap did freeze on multiple occasions, it didn't burst the pipe.

In Central belt of Scotland - where parent's home is - tomorrow night into Wed morning is forecast to -9 (-13C windchill) - thats the coldest I can remember seeing in a long time.

Not all parts fo the UK are the same.

Swipe

Scot_39 said:

Swipe said:

What_time_is_it said:

Sounds like we need to have the heating left on for longer than we currently have it anyway. The problem is that we won't be there until around midnight on Wednesday so we might have to cross our fingers for the next few days. Bit worried to be honest.

As long as you get there by midnight Wednesday I think you'll be fine. Wednesday night / Thursday morning will be the low point of the week. My bathroom often gets down to below 5C during cold spells and I've never had in internal pipe freeze, just the external garden outside tap pipe that goes through the bathroom wall and then it only freezes on the outside even when it's insulated. I now isolate it via the internal valve and open the tap. And even when the outside tap did freeze on multiple occasions, it didn't burst the pipe.

In Central belt of Scotland - where parent's home is - tomorrow night into Wed morning is forecast to -9 (-13C windchill) - thats the coldest I can remember seeing in a long time.

Not all parts fo the UK are the same.

The OP's property in question is in Surrey. I've posted a screenshot of the forecast for this week. Max -4C low

Scot_39

Swipe said:

Scot_39 said:

Swipe said:

What_time_is_it said:

Sounds like we need to have the heating left on for longer than we currently have it anyway. The problem is that we won't be there until around midnight on Wednesday so we might have to cross our fingers for the next few days. Bit worried to be honest.

As long as you get there by midnight Wednesday I think you'll be fine. Wednesday night / Thursday morning will be the low point of the week. My bathroom often gets down to below 5C during cold spells and I've never had in internal pipe freeze, just the external garden outside tap pipe that goes through the bathroom wall and then it only freezes on the outside even when it's insulated. I now isolate it via the internal valve and open the tap. And even when the outside tap did freeze on multiple occasions, it didn't burst the pipe.

In Central belt of Scotland - where parent's home is - tomorrow night into Wed morning is forecast to -9 (-13C windchill) - thats the coldest I can remember seeing in a long time.

Not all parts fo the UK are the same.

The OP's property in question is in Surrey. I've posted a screenshot of the forecast for this week. Max -4C low

Oops missed that on page 2.

And if that's a BBC weather printout - those temps may even include windchill - the day summary lows always seem lower than the hourly breakdowns.

FreeBear

What_time_is_it said:

Gerry1 said:

Leave it on the whole time with the thermostat set to 10⁰-12⁰C or whatever the insurance company requires.  Turn the water off at the stopcock.

Saving a few pounds would be a false economy if the pipes burst and flood the place.

The stopcock is jammed so we can't do that.

If this is the only stopcock (i.e. none out in the street), then get the local water company out to replace it - They would be responsible for it, and it is free (or it was when they did mine).

Should you have a stopcock out in the street, I'd suggest turning it off and draining down the central heating system & cold water pipes.

markin

And the vacant property insurance hasn't got fine print saying drain all water or min 12c?

Gerry1

Beware of turning the supply off at the stopcock, draining everything, turning the heating down or off and leaving the property.

I discovered that when the stopcock under the kitchen sink was turned right down it didn't fully shut the water off.  Presumably it had become furred up because of the very hard water.

I turned the street stopcock off.  Same problem, the cold tank still filled up.

Asked the water company to turn it off so that if they damaged it through excessive force it would be their problem, not mine.  They failed to notice that the indicator was still spinning !

Called them back again and they said the whole meter had to be replaced.

Took nearly a month before they returned, and they had to close the pavement and dig it up...

ArbitraryRandom

Gerry1 said:

I discovered that when the stopcock under the kitchen sink was turned right down it didn't fully shut the water off.  

Is that why you turn it off but then leave the taps open? 

I'll admit, I've never had to do it other than very briefly when changing the taps in the kitchen. 

Gerry1

No, the cold tank had a leaking ballcock valve that I needed to change.  Expected it to be a simple 10-minute DIY job but it ended up with a steady flow from the overflow pipe for weeks until the pavement was dug up.

EssexHebridean

OP - please sort the stopcock issue before you sell, or at the very least ensure that it is very clearly noted on the property information form. This could be a real issue for the buyers - imagine yourself in their shoes finding a problem on moving ion that needs the water turned off and then discovering that they can't  easily and quickly do that!