This city does not just get cold. It oscillates. A thaw on Tuesday and 8°F on Thursday is how a line that 'made it through January' opens in February. Uninsulated rim joists on hillside houses make it worse.
Where they freeze here
- Basement rim joists above hose bibs.
- Kitchen supplies on outside walls in row houses.
- Garage ceilings and bonus rooms over unheated space.
- Vacant upper units in two-family houses.
- Crawlspaces on ranches in the North Hills.
The South Hills and sloped city streets see this more than a tight interior townhouse. See the South Hills and city pages for how we route those calls.
Prevention that actually works
- Heat stays on if you leave town. 55 is a compromise, not a strategy, in a leaky 1920 house.
- Open cabinet doors on outside-wall sinks during a predicted single-digit night.
- A trickle at the farthest fixture on an exposed run.
- Disconnect and drain hose bibs before the first hard freeze.
- Insulate the rim, not just the boiler pipes you can see.
If it is already frozen
Do not use a torch. Hair dryers and space heat from the room side are slower and less likely to open a solder joint. If there is no water at a fixture, treat it as urgent and use frozen pipe repair. If it has already split, switch to the burst checklist.
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