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my tub is frozen

luvs

'lil yinzer~
GOLD Site Supporter
again. too late to call my landlords. 1 sink pipe already went & was repaired very recently, & i hear that there was a basement flood, too.
how can i thaw that tub & not compromise its pipes~
 

300 H and H

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
Luvs,

If you can see the pipes, warm water poured over them is the best way. If they are not exposed, then getting warm air to the spot with say a hair dryer would be the way...but be carefull not to start a fire... Hope this helps.

Regards, Kirk
 

leadarrows

Member
If you can get to the pipes then you could wrap electric pipe tape around them. If you can get them working let them run slightly. Moving water won't freeze as easy.
 

luvs

'lil yinzer~
GOLD Site Supporter
i can see a few bathroom pipes. i, too, figured i should use my hairdryer. then i realized, again, that i somehow misplaced that. plus, my tub plumbing is not visable. my sinks' can be easily seen, though.
leadarrows, my landlord & a few others suggest letting my h2o trickle. during a day that i'll be nearby, i'm gonna open 1. w/ my tub currently being plugged, i'll hafta watch & wait.
my landlord said they would likely freeze again.
correct he was on that 1!
thanx, guys--
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter
i can see a few bathroom pipes. i, too, figured i should use my hairdryer. then i realized, again, that i somehow misplaced that. plus, my tub plumbing is not visable. my sinks' can be easily seen, though.
leadarrows, my landlord & a few others suggest letting my h2o trickle. during a day that i'll be nearby, i'm gonna open 1. w/ my tub currently being plugged, i'll hafta watch & wait.
my landlord said they would likely freeze again.
correct he was on that 1!
thanx, guys--

If your drain pipes are metal, then filling the tub with warm water may conduct enough heat to thaw them. This also tru if the tub is cast iron. The Tub will warm and convect heat to the sub space under it. At 15 starting amps, and about 6 amps maintanence, they are very economical space heaters and won't start a fire.


Putting an oil filled portable heater (about $ 50.00 at Lowes) in the bathroom will also help and is safer than using a hair dryer around your water. Super heat the bathroom and the tub will again convect the heat to the pipes.
 

waybomb

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure............

I cannot fathom why people, when we have these ungodly low temperatures, do not simply open the outside wall faucets and fixtures so they drip. Not run, but just drip.

It takes a whole bunch of BTUs (1200 per gallon) to turn 32f water into 32f ice. The flow of drips is enough to offset any btu's removed over time.
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter
If your drain pipes are metal, then filling the tub with warm water may conduct enough heat to thaw them. This also tru if the tub is cast iron. The Tub will warm and convect heat to the sub space under it. At 15 starting amps, and about 6 amps maintanence, they are very economical space heaters and won't start a fire.


Putting an oil filled portable heater (about $ 50.00 at Lowes) in the bathroom will also help and is safer than using a hair dryer around your water.At 15 starting amps, and about 6 amps maintanence, they are very economical space heaters and won't start a fire.


Super heat the bathroom and the tub will again convect the heat to the pipes.
 

NorthernRedneck

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
I have rental properties. When the places are empty ill turn the heat down to 60 degrees and leave the taps on just trickling. Haven't had a problem yet with freezing pipes. Water has a hard time freezing when its in motion.

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk
 

luvs

'lil yinzer~
GOLD Site Supporter
that would likely be effective. if my h2o was running in places besides my kitchen sinks. wb, my exterior faucets- they're not my own. they're my landlords', &, moreover, they're locked into an exterior cement structure that we cannot enter. plain & simple. most locals lack fer h2o of that sort- we simply improv & we wait. i buy jugs of h2o, tho prefer to not risk busted pipes.
 
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luvs

'lil yinzer~
GOLD Site Supporter
he got my drain to thaw & that is sufficient fer a few daze. they're running a heater via my friend's place over those pipes, yet. my 1 way to use h2o is my kitchen. my other pipes have apparently taken a nap. local climate is changing soon enough, so that may fix stuff.
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter

Read the post sir. It assumes the tub is metal.

The space under the tub is open and often not insulated. Metal tubs conduct heat which is why they can still feel still bone chilin' even when you fill them with hot water.
But the will conduct it to thepipes and the area underneath and warm the plumbing.

Yes, it will work.

In winter, I often leve the bath wter in the tub after bathing. I paid to heat it and want that het in the room. it also puts water vapor in the house and yes, it warms the area under the tub, and the descending drain pipes, over time.

I learned this trick in Chicago where the bulider of my two story house cantilevered half the tub out over the first floor wall. That sucker would freeze at 32F. Kane, I think you have spent too much time in Florida.
 

Kane

New member
Read the post sir. It assumes the tub is metal.

The space under the tub is open and often not insulated. Metal tubs conduct heat which is why they can still feel still bone chilin' even when you fill them with hot water.
But the will conduct it to thepipes and the area underneath and warm the plumbing.

Yes, it will work.

In winter, I often leve the bath wter in the tub after bathing. I paid to heat it and want that het in the room. it also puts water vapor in the house and yes, it warms the area under the tub, and the descending drain pipes, over time.

I learned this trick in Chicago where the bulider of my two story house cantilevered half the tub out over the first floor wall. That sucker would freeze at 32F. Kane, I think you have spent too much time in Florida.
no, no, no, Franc. Your theory is right on, and it works (I'm from shit-hole frozen cold Iowa, remember, where minus twenty and frozen supply lines are the norm).

I was just wondering where poor luvs was gonna' get all of this hot water to put in a tub with frozen pipes.
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter
no, no, no, Franc. Your theory is right on, and it works (I'm from shit-hole frozen cold Iowa, remember, where minus twenty and frozen supply lines are the norm).

I was just wondering where poor luvs was gonna' get all of this hot water to put in a tub with frozen pipes.

I thought she was a chef. Surely she can connect the dots.:yum:
 

luvs

'lil yinzer~
GOLD Site Supporter
for some reason or another, my kitchen sink currently runs, guys. being a Chef, i have many bowls that i use to get h2o to my tub. my landlord is warming 'em those tub pipes again, too. he's using 1 warming device @ my neighbors, & running another here.
 

luvs

'lil yinzer~
GOLD Site Supporter
& on my saga continues. h2o is flowing now, although their basement flooded really, really hip-wader deep, & half my neighborhood is in a similar predicament.
btw- my tub is porcelain. half my pipes- metal; other lines, synthetic.
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter
& on my saga continues. h2o is flowing now, although their basement flooded really, really hip-wader deep, & half my neighborhood is in a similar predicament.
btw- my tub is porcelain. half my pipes- metal; other lines, synthetic.
If your tub is porcelean, then it is made of iron or steel. Porcelean is just a baked on enamal.
 

luvs

'lil yinzer~
GOLD Site Supporter
well, i knew that, franc. he was here again, earlier, & he needed to take a hammer to my walls to get to a few pipes, then said he needed to buy a few items. old man winter surely took his toll.
 

marchplumber

Member
Site Supporter
Like others have said, moving water doesn't freeze. If your drain if frozen though, can't let the water run. Catch 22. Suggest oil space heater with a fan to blow the warm air towards tub. If you can get to the drain from basement, point fan towards it. Have used steam wand to good effect, but need to have the equipment. Warm water in the tub will work with convection, heating the surrounding area, but the warm water won't make it to the frozen area of the drain, unless it is right in the trap. Warm water rises, cold water sinks. Suggest if water pipes are frozen, and drain works, to open the faucets to relieve pressure and allow flow when water starts to thaw. Prevention really is the best cure. All it takes is 33 F to thaw, and normally a fan can provide that if pointed in the correct location. Then have Landlord INSULATE between exterior and the pipe. NOT between interior and pipe. That way, the pipe gets the heat from inside the house. Stop all possible air flow from exterior to interior. Heat tapes are an option if insulation isn't feasible. Open cabinet doors under fixtures and set the fan close blowing into the opening. Hope this helped a little.

God bless,
Tony
 

luvs

'lil yinzer~
GOLD Site Supporter
i thank u, though i won't instruct my landlord on how to run his property. he is putting forth quite plenty enough effort, & brought another in to consult w/, & is managing well. climate is/was kind of dictating.
 

Bamby

New member
Putting an oil filled portable heater (about $ 50.00 at Lowes) in the bathroom will also help and is safer than using a hair dryer around your water. Super heat the bathroom and the tub will again convect the heat to the pipes.

An even cheaper option is a Halogen Work Light if used carefully. They put off a lot of heat and warm surfaces with similar sunshine like effect. They can be had or purchased cheaply and having a bright light available is useful for other tasks from time to time like painting.
 

luvs

'lil yinzer~
GOLD Site Supporter
so as to reiterate- my landlord owns my place. i rent. i respect him. 'nuff said.
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter
An even cheaper option is a Halogen Work Light if used carefully. They put off a lot of heat and warm surfaces with similar sunshine like effect. They can be had or purchased cheaply and having a bright light available is useful for other tasks from time to time like painting.


That would be an excellent temporary measure to force heat conduction to the problem area.:thumb:
 
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