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Winter Tips To Stay Warm – Extreme Cold Temps, No Heat and Frozen Pipes

It’s another extremely cold winter day.

Cold temperatures with blowing snow, it can be a disaster for your home’s Plumbing and Heating!

1. Go out and dig ALL the snow away from all Heating vents – Furnace, Water Heater, Dryer, Fireplace.

2. Some vents have a little screen in them (to stop critters from climbing up in) this can freeze over with the condensate exhausting from the furnace, if it does just pull it out and ensure the vents are completely 100% clear.

3. Prevent your water from freezing by running all your taps consistently over the day to keep water running through the pipes or leave a tap running. Especially if you have washrooms you rarely use.

4. If you do not have a heated basement get a heater for the mechanical room – A small room heater that is meant for indoor use will help!

5. Its too late – your pipes have froze…
– Leave the cupboard doors open so heat can get to the pipes.
– Insulating your pipes will help as well or putting a piece of hard foam insulation at the back of the cupboards.
– Place a small heater close to the pipes – be very careful not to leave it in the cupboard and unattended – do not create a fire risk. If you do not have a small heater, a lamp will help provide extra heat.
– Open your taps so that the water has somewhere to expand to, if it does not this is when pipes will burst.
– It is essential to have heat in your mechanical room.
– Wherever your water pipes are outside do not drive over this area as it can push the frost down and cause pipes (and even sewage/septic lines) to freeze!

6. Please do NOT leave your pets out in these temperatures!

7. It’s way too cold for children to play outside – make it a board game movie day or check out public skating.

8. Vehicles will need to warm up even just for a few minutes before driving.

9. Clear all the snow and ice away from all doors to ensure a proper latch for them to stay properly closed. In temperatures like this it won’t take much to cause problems!

10. It’s Family Day, if you really do not need to go out, Don’t! Enjoy the day with your family and stay cozy warm!The sun is shining brightly but its darn cold out there!

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Staying Warm In The Cold Temperatures – Winter is here!

The cold winter temperatures are here and will continue dropping this weekend (as per the weather man that is)!.

This means your heating system is going to be working harder – it really has had it easy this winter season up until now 😉 To ensure your system is working efficiently and air is circulating properly throughout your home there are a few things you need to do…

  1. Change your filter – this should be done every 2-3 mths or every 1 month during heating season.
  2. Ensure your vents are clear inside – this includes your heat registers inside your home (where the heat comes out of – typically on an exterior wall) and also your cold air returns (where air returns to the furnace to be re-heated and circulated – typically on an interior wall of the room). Vacuum your vents during heating season, you might be surprised how much dust and pet hair can be sucked up into them. Take off the registers and clean inside the duct, this is where alot of dust and pet hair likes to hide as well!
  3. Ensure your vents are clear outside – this is where your heating system vents outdoors, if these vents get covered by snow or even plants your furnace can suffocate/over heat and it could cause serious damage.
  4. Ensure your heating system has room in your mechanical room… do not crowd it with boxes or whatever else you may store in your basement. Yes its not the most attractive piece of equipment but it needs space to work properly.

We highly recommend having your furnace cleaned prior to the heating season – August/September to ensure you are ready ! This will not stop any malfunctions or breakdowns, however it will prevent it … “preventative maintenance” and will ensure the system is operating properly and efficiently as per the manufacturer. Many times the manufacturer may not cover a part under warranty (even if within the warranty period) if the furnace has not been properly maintained. This is very similar to how the car manufacturer’s work as well. Our technicians do perform cleanings all year round, however in the midst of heating season (December/January) it is more difficult to ensure timely service for our cleanings. To schedule your heating and cooling system annual cleaning please contact us and we will put you on our service list, preferably for the Spring, Summer and Fall :).

We are the home comfort people who service what we sell and more! At JJ McLellan and Son we are here to help you out with all of your service, repair and new installation for plumbing and heating.

Give us a call at 1-866-565-5513 or www.jjmclellan.ca.