Winter Pipe-Burst Prevention: A Philly Homeowner's Checklist

By The Acme Plumbing Team · 5/30/2026

The pipes that burst in a Philadelphia cold snap are almost always the ones you never think about: the run along an exterior wall, the line in an unheated garage, the hose bib you forgot to drain in October.

Start outside: disconnect and drain every garden hose and shut the interior valve feeding each spigot. Inside, insulate exposed pipe with foam sleeves and, on the coldest nights, let a pencil-thin trickle run from the furthest faucet.

Know where your main shut-off is and make sure it turns freely before you need it in the dark. Run through this list once before the first hard freeze and you eliminate most winter emergencies.