NEW RICHMOND, Ohio — When temperatures are consistently below freezing, the threat of frozen pipes increases, which can lead to your water supply being cut off — something that happened to one New Richmond family.
“It’s been four days since we’ve had the water or anything,” said Amanda Lubbers, whose pipes froze on Friday afternoon due to the below-freezing temperatures.
WATCH: We help Lubbers repair her frozen pipes, and the best way to thaw frozen pipes:
Lubbers told us she did leave her water on a slow drip to try to prevent this from happening. After days without any running water, Lubbers made a Facebook post asking for help. Lubbers and her husband are unable to repair the pipes themselves, and they're not able to pay much to someone else to repair them.
“Just cooking, bathing, your basic everyday things we haven’t been able to do in the last four days,” Lubbers said.
We took it upon ourselves to find her and her family a solution, and after calling multiple plumbing companies, Jolly Plumbing, Drains, Heating and Air volunteered to help, free of charge.
Clay Gray from Jolly Plumbing met us out at Lubbers’ mobile home. He quickly discovered that the heating tape around the pipes was no longer working due to an outlet under the home being shot, leading to the frozen pipes.
“So hopefully the frozen line is just right here and nothing farther,” Gray said as he looked under the mobile home. “Now I’m gonna put this blow dryer on this waterline and try to thaw it up, and get the water moving.”
If your pipes freeze, Gray says a blow dryer is your best option if you have plastic pipes. If you have copper pipes, Gray says you can use a heat gun or torch if they freeze.
After about 30 minutes of blow-drying the Lubbers' pipes, Gray was able to defrost them and get the water flowing again. Unfortunately, due to the frozen water, their home's water meter cracked and began spraying water.
So, while the Lubbers got some relief, their water will have to be shut off until they are able to replace their water meter — something they told us they hope to do soon.
