Use a Heating Cable. A cheaper alternative to purchasing a heated hose is purchasing a heated cable, wrapping it along the length of your current garden hose, and securing it with heat tape. A heat cable allows you to create a DIY heated hose that can protect your hose throughout the winter.
Hoses can be stored outside as long as you make sure to drain all of the water from the hose. Hoses can be drained easily by running them over a tall place where gravity forces water to exit the hose. This ensures that the hose won't split when any residual water freezes.
After opening and draining the hose bibs, leave the valves open. If there is a slow leak from your isolation valve, leaving the hose bib open will allow any ice to expand down and out instead of it expanding inside a closed system where it could crack the pipe or plumbing fixture.
Pipes can freeze whenever the temperature is below 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Insulated pipes are most likely to freeze at 20 degrees or colder. Drip or cover faucets when it's 28 degrees or colder for three or more hours.
The water inside the hose can rapidly freeze when the temperature drops below 32 degrees. Burst outside spigots is a potentially expensive problem that is relatively easy to avoid.
Place the hose in a shed, garage or other storage area. It should be dry and free from any weathering elements until the spring. Some residents discover that their garden hoses are still damaged after going through these drainage and storage tips. Pests might find your hose over the winter.
Traditional wisdom states that garden hoses should be disconnected from the outdoor water valve in the winter to prevent freezing of water in the pipes inside the house resulting in bursting of those pipes.
You'll likely have one of two valve types—a gate valve or a ball valve with a lever. Gate valves have circular handles that you turn until it stops. Ball valves have a handle that runs perpendicular to the pipe when closed. Turn this valve 45 degrees so it sits parallel to the pipe.
In cold weather, the water left inside a standard bib can freeze, expand, and potentially burst the pipe, leading to expensive and time-consuming repairs. Frost-free hose bibs come in various lengths to accommodate different wall thicknesses, ensuring that homeowners can find the right fit for their property.
Your house valve is typically located on the outside of your home. It may be in the front, on the side or in the backyard. Look for a hose bib (outside faucet) next to your home with a pipe coming up from the ground (Photo 1). The house valve is located on that pipe between the ground and the hose bib.
Freeze Miser protectors helped us do much during the last big freeze and kept our water troughs going for the cows. This customer chose to rate the product and not provide text. The freeze misers worked as advertised, keeping my outside hose bibs from freezing during extended temperatures well below freezing.
If you do not want to spend extra money on a high water bill, or you are able to isolate your exterior faucet from the mains water supply, then covering the faucet will likely be better for you. If you can drip your faucet, however, then it may be more effective in protecting your pipework from over-expansion.
If you can't use a heated hose, you can wrap your garden hose with insulation. Foam pipe insulation or old towels can provide extra insulation against the cold.
One of the most helpful devices that any gardener can benefit from is a hose pot. By protecting your garden hose from weather, wear-and-tear, and other outdoor conditions, having the best hose pot in your repertoire can make all the difference.
STORE IN A TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLED LOCATION.
A garden hose will have the longest life if stored in a temperature-controlled room throughout the winter. Keep hoses in a closet or basement until the spring to ensure they will work properly when the flowers bloom.
What Happens If You Don't Disconnect Your Hose? While some homeowners may have gotten away with leaving hoses connected in past winters, it poses significant risks. If water remains in the hose, it can freeze, causing the copper pipes to expand and eventually split.
Swan's ThermaFLEX® garden hose is designed for use in low temperatures and boasts a special thermal-conducting jacket. Unlike traditional PVC hoses that become rigid and prone to cracking at 50 degrees Fahrenheit, the ThermaFLEX® hose maintains its flexibility down to -30 degrees Fahrenheit.
Typically, outdoor faucets should be opened when temperatures fall below 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Freezing water expands and can cause pipes to crack or burst. If you have a frost-free faucet, it provides extra protection, but you may still need to leave it open during extreme cold.
Not only do outdoor faucet covers prevent people who shouldn't be in your yard from accessing the water supply, but they also keep critters out. Mice, hornets, ants, termites, and numerous other things that crawl, fly, and bite can enter your home through the pipes.