How can I help to prevent my pipes bursting in cold weather?

There are steps you can take to prevent pipes from freezing or bursting.

These include:

keeping your home as warm as possible, even when it is unoccupied
lagging pipes which are fitted in exposed or draughty areas
leaving the trap door to your roofspace open to let warm air flow in
checking to make sure taps are turned off properly, especially late at night
never using an electric, gas or paraffin heater in your roofspace
familiarising yourself with your water supply and locating the main stopcock which turns off the supply to your property.

If you discover a pipe has frozen, follow these tips:

put hot water bottles or a thick cloth, soaked in hot water, over the frozen pipe
begin at the end of the pipe (nearest the tap) and work your way along the pipe
never use a naked flame.

If a pipe bursts, try the following steps:

use the main stopcock to turn off the water supply to your home
if you can`t stop the flow of water, drain the system by opening all your cold taps
if the burst pipe is in your storage tank, turn off the stop valve (this is inside your storage tank)
drain the system by turning on all your hot taps, allowing the fire to burn out
turn your heating off until a plumber has examined the burst pipe.

NI Water also has a video and leaflet advising on how to protect pipes, where to find your stop valve and insulate your water tank:

View NI Water video

Download NI water leaflet (PDF)