How to Prevent Frozen Pipes in a Winston-Salem Winter

How cold does it have to get in Winston-Salem?

Freezing nights are routine here, but a single 31-degree night rarely splits a pipe. The City of Winston-Salem says the risk climbs once temperatures fall to 20°F or below, which is the number worth watching in the forecast. Wind, a night that stays below freezing into the next afternoon, and a cold snap that lasts several days all push the risk up further.

The season is longer than many newcomers expect. NC State Extension's freeze table puts the average first fall freeze at Smith Reynolds Airport on November 3 and the average last spring freeze on April 1. Stations to the south and west run a little colder on average: Mocksville in Davie County averages an October 26 first freeze and an April 13 last freeze, and Lexington in Davidson County runs October 28 to April 7. A late March cold snap after a few warm weeks is exactly when people have already reconnected the garden hose.

Which pipes in a Triad house freeze first?

Water lines freeze where cold air reaches them and household heat does not. In this area that usually means:

• Vented crawl spaces. A large share of local houses sit on crawl spaces, and supply lines run along the joists a foot or two above open foundation vents.
• Outside walls. Kitchen and bathroom sinks on an exterior wall, especially when the cabinet doors stay shut.
• Garages and additions. Laundry hookups and water heaters in unheated garages, and pipes in porches or sunrooms that were closed in later.
• Hose bibbs. Outdoor faucets, particularly older ones that are not frost-free or that still have a hose attached.
• The service entry. The spot where the water line comes through the foundation.

Age matters. About 43 percent of Winston-Salem homes were built before 1980, and many of those houses have drafty crawl space doors, gaps around pipe penetrations and little or no pipe insulation. If you are not sure what the lines under your house look like, a whole-house plumbing inspection before winter will show which runs are exposed.

What should you do in the fall?

Most of the protection happens weeks before the first hard freeze, and most of it is inexpensive.

1. Find the main shutoff and tag it. The city notes it is usually in the basement, the garage or outdoors by the foundation. Make sure it turns, and show everyone in the house where it is.
2. Insulate exposed pipe. Foam sleeves on crawl space, attic and garage runs. NC State Extension also recommends UL-approved heat tape or heat cable on problem pipes, installed per the manufacturer's directions.
3. Seal the drafts. Close gaps where pipes pass through the rim joist or foundation, and repair a broken crawl space door.
4. Deal with outdoor faucets. Disconnect and drain hoses and put an insulated cover on each spigot. If an outdoor faucet has its own shutoff inside, close it and open the outside faucet so the short section drains.
5. Blanket a cold water heater. The city suggests an insulating blanket on a tank that sits in an unheated space.
6. Drain irrigation lines following the installer's instructions. If a lawn system has a backflow assembly, protecting it from freezing is part of the same job, and a backflow tester can show you how it drains.

On frost-free sillcocks: North Carolina's residential code (Section P2903.10, as interpreted by the Office of State Fire Marshal in 2020) calls for hose bibbs subject to freezing to have an accessible stop-and-waste valve inside the building. The interpretation allows an exception for frost-free bibbs in ventilated crawl spaces where ground heat usually keeps pipes from freezing, but it warns that relying on heat leaking from an older house may not be dependable. If your outdoor faucets have no inside shutoff, it is worth asking a plumber about adding one when other faucet work is being done.

What should you do the night a hard freeze is forecast?

A note on the water meter: Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Utilities asks customers never to open the meter box, because the communication device on its smart meters breaks easily. If the meter lid is missing or damaged, report it. Salisbury-Rowan Utilities likewise asks customers to make sure meter covers are closed so the meter does not freeze.

What if a faucet only trickles on a cold morning?

That usually means ice is forming somewhere in the line feeding it. The Red Cross suggests leaving the faucet open and warming the suspected section with a hair dryer, an electric heating pad, towels soaked in hot water, or a space heater kept away from anything that can burn. Work from the faucet back toward the frozen spot. Keep going until full pressure returns, then check the other faucets in the house, since one frozen line is often joined by another.

Never use a torch, kerosene or propane heater, charcoal stove or any open flame, and do not run ungrounded electrical equipment near wet pipes. NC State Extension goes further and recommends calling a plumber rather than thawing pipes yourself. If you cannot find or reach the frozen section, that is the point to call. A pipe that is still frozen can already be cracked, so keep the shutoff handy while it thaws. If water starts spraying, follow our first 10 minutes after a burst pipe checklist.

Who is responsible for which pipes?

The City of Winston-Salem says Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Utilities handles breaks in water and sewer mains in the street, and property owners handle breaks on private property. The city does not publish an exact handoff point at the meter, so for a leak near the meter box, call CityLink at 311 or 336-727-8000 and let the utility check first. CityLink is also the number for an emergency shutoff at the meter.

In Salisbury, Spencer and other Salisbury-Rowan Utilities areas, the city says customers are responsible for protecting their private pipes from freezing and suggests having a plumber install a shutoff valve if the house has none. SRU's after-hours water emergency line is 704-638-5339. Lexington operates its own utilities, so homeowners there should use the city's numbers.

Homes on private wells in rural Forsyth, Davie and Rowan counties have one more weak point: the well pump, pressure tank and the line between them. A pump house needs heat or insulation, and if a frozen line has stopped water to the house, a well pump repair visit can confirm whether the pump was damaged.

When is a permanent fix worth it?

If the same pipe freezes every January, insulation alone may not be enough. Options a plumber may suggest include rerouting the run away from a vent or outside wall, adding heat cable, installing a frost-free sillcock with an inside shutoff, or replacing a stretch of old pipe. In older houses with galvanized lines that have already been patched several times, replacing the supply piping can be the longer-term answer. For a list of nearby towns covered by this referral service, including Clemmons and Kernersville, see the full service area list.