With all that in mind, this year we’ve decided to get in early and send out some advice. We saw the first winter’s frost this morning, and we’re not even in November!

Preventative measures..

• Run your taps frequently to get water flowing, moving water is less likely to freeze. We don’t mean leave them on, just use what you have. If you have a separate WC that’s only used occasionally, then try and alternate it with the main bathroom.  
• Keep central heating on a low level at all times. This might sound expensive, but the costs of a burst pipe are far more in the long term. If you have a low heat on constantly, your property is more likely to absorb more of the heat and the ambient temperature should rise naturally, rather than a quick blast of the boiler first thing in the morning and last thing at night.  If you have a pre payment gas & electric meter and you’re going away, make sure you leave enough credit for the time you’re not there!
• Leave room doors open to allow warm air to circulate around the house. This will go against most people’s theories on heat preservation, however if a pipe busts in that cold little study you’ve shut off for the winter, you’ll wish you’d left the door open.
• Familiarize yourself with where you isolate the water at your property. It’s no good running around with a torch in your nightwear at 3am looking for a stopcock. Make sure you know where yours is. If you’re in an older house, it may well be that its outside in the road. If that’s the case, go and check it now to make sure it works and you can find it. Don’t forget, if you do have a flood the chances are there could be snow and ice outside covering it up!
• Familiarize yourself with your central heating controls. It may be that you’ve not used them yet if you moved into a new property over the summer months. If you’re in a rented property (certainly one of ours!) then you’ll have a gas safety certificate conducted annually, however things do break down and repairs sometimes do need to be made. Check everything now before it gets too cold.  
• Pipe protectors are available from most DIY shops at a small cost. It’s a split foam tube that snaps around the pipe and protects it from frost. Something to consider.

Frozen pipe work..

• To thaw frozen pipes you could use a hot water bottle or hair dryer – this isn’t ideal, but if the frozen pipe is in the house and its accessible, it could stop it from swelling and splitting.
• Be sure to move any possesions away from it, and expecially anything electrical!
• Warning! Never use a naked flame when thawing out pipes!

In an emergency..

If the worst does happen, then there are a few things you’ll need to do..

• Turn off the water supply by the main stop tap – in most properties you’ll find this under the sink. If it’s not there, follow the cold pipe away from the sink to where the water supply enters the house. If you still can’t find it, it’s possible its out in the street under a small metal grate probably marked 'W' or 'Stop Cock'
• Switch off the central heating immediately, a lack of water going into the system could damage it and cause you even more complications.
• Turn on the taps in the kitchen and bathrooms – this will help to drain the system away and help release any pressure from a burst. It also means there will be less water in the pipes to flood out!
• Consider switching off the electricity supply. Water and electricity don’t mix well, and can be dangerous. Most properties now have RCD protected circuits, so the power may trip anyway if something gets wet.
• Protect everything around the burst pipe – move all your belongings away from the area to protect them, and clear an area for repairs to be made.
• If you’re in a flat or apartment, tell your neighbours that their property might be at risk, especially if they’re downstairs!

 Above all things, prior planning and preperation is the key. Keep a list of emergency phone numbers to hand just in case the worst happens, and think through what you would do if your house was flooded. Flood repairs take weeks and months to carry out effectively, so dont be a victim!

If you have any problems, or need any further advice, contact our office on 0115 9497761 or email us at info@speedyletsonline.co.uk

many thanks

The Speedylets team

So here we go again..

Over the last 3 months, we've been going through some significant changes here at Speedylets. We've upgraded our website to a full content management system from Gnomen, which whilst really functional, has taken us some time to get to grips with! As a consequence, our blogs been on downtime waiting in the wings to make a comeback. Finally we're back up and running, and ready to blog again.. 

Our aim is to bring you some relevant content and useful information, for both landlords and tenants alike. If theres something you'd like us to address, then send us an email straight through to blog@speedyletsonline.co.uk and we'll do our very best to cover it.. 

for now, thanks for sticking with us and we look forward to working with you in the future..

many thanks - The Speedylets Team