Plumbing advice: No water in shower

[Doctorfever]

You either cut into the wall or wait. If you can, I would isolate those pipes by turning valves off. The pipes may have froze and split. You won’t know until they thaw, then you might have a flood. Do you have access to the plumbing lines in your basement? You could install a few valves in the lines and close the new valves so you at least isolate the problem area.

One of the downsides is that you may be without water in other parts or your house / bathroom, depending on how the plumbing lines are installed.

[Wormius]

Cutting into the wall assumes he knows where the frozen section is.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Yeah anything like that is well beyond what I can do.
And it seems if the choice is between waiting to see if it thaws and having someone tear into my wall, not knowing where the frozen section is, it is prudent to wait.
I realize that it means risk of a breakage, but basically at night and when I'm not home, I will simply turn off the overall water access to avoid a massive flood.

[Doctorfever]

Yes. That’s right.
If he has access the view the plumbing lines from below it would be easy to determine that. Without actually seeing it for myself, I would probably go with the valves like I posted and hope the lines aren’t split. Especially since there will be tile or something on the wall.

If the lines are split, at least you have it isolated.

[Robbob]

With the swing of weather today, the day time high is supposed to be closer to -10, so space heater and patience may be the way to go.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Wormius

Cutting into the wall assumes he knows where the frozen section is.

Silence you!

Yeah! Start cutting into the walls? Need some help? I've got a sawzall...

[PepsiFree]

At least cutting experimental holes in your walls until you find the issue is better advice than burning down your house.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

At least cutting experimental holes in your walls until you find the issue is better advice than burning down your house.

I mean...they both have their drawbacks but one's drawbacks are clearly more minor than the other's.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by Robbob

With the swing of weather today, the day time high is supposed to be closer to -10, so space heater and patience may be the way to go.

https://weather.gc.ca/forecast/hourl..._metric_e.html


Unfortunately the daytime high doesn't hit until 10pm. I also found it takes a lot longer of warmer temperatures to defrost this type of thing. My dishwasher line used to freeze, and it would take a few hours with the bottom plate off, blasting a fan underneath to defrost it. In the wall with insulation and stuff? It may be awhile. Should be +1 by...Saturday.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Since i have water to the rest of the house, I can probably be patient here. I can shower at my gym, and then shut off the main water at night. And wait until things warm up to see if it solves it.

[Fuzz]

Presumably there is a room below the bathroom you can access? I'd keep a very close eye on that ceiling for warning signs it is leaking before disaster.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Presumably there is a room below the bathroom you can access? I'd keep a very close eye on that ceiling for warning signs it is leaking before disaster.

Yeah the main floor bathroom is right below it. Where the water is fine, so presumably the freeze up is in between the main floor and second floor. But yeah watching that closely.

[DoubleF]

Originally Posted by Wormius

So basically what the homeowner could do, but is trying to avoid by calling a plumber?

I wonder if he could just jack up the temperature to 24-26C? No idea if that'd increase the chances of attic rain though...

I think Jiri should be careful of a pipe bursting from it freezing if indeed he's identified his pipes are PolyB instead of PEX or copper. PolyB durability isn't great. Leaving that shower or tub on to allow for a dribble if possible might not be a bad idea, but I dunno. I'd at least monitor it carefully over the next few days when things start to thaw out.

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by DoubleF

I wonder if he could just jack up the temperature to 24-26C? No idea if that'd increase the chances of attic rain though...

I think Jiri should be careful of a pipe bursting from it freezing if indeed he's identified his pipes are PolyB instead of PEX or copper. PolyB durability isn't great. Leaving that shower or tub on to allow for a dribble if possible might not be a bad idea, but I dunno. I'd at least monitor it carefully over the next few days when things start to thaw out.

If the frozen line is on the other side of the insulation, there likely isn’t much he can do, you’re basically trying to heat up the outside of the house through a layer of drywall and insulation. We have had a section of polyb freeze before and it was fine. Polyb has a bad rep, but ours has been in the house for 30 years with no ill effects.

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by Wormius

At least if it’s plastic, it’s less prone to bursting.

Except he said it's PolyB, so it will just burst whenever it feels like it's time.

[blankall]

If pipes are copper they are likely at least 60 years old and have gone through many freezings during that time. IMO the risk from old copper pipping is overrated for this reason. People talk about copper pipes only being guaranteed for X amount of time, but if a deficiency hasn't been discovered in 60 years, it's likely not there.

Unless there's evidence of corrosion, copper piping can last well over a 100 years. I would never replace it just for the sake of it. Have it inspected, then decide.

[Locke]

How is "Operation: Flamethrower" going?

[zamler]

Old copper pipe is awesome the stuff is thicker than what you buy now. So I thought it was code that any outside wall above grade can't have plumbing.

[Fuzz]

I was talking to the guy at Benner's about mine, as they were a thicker wall than what I am used to seeing. He said those were industrial, but the problem is still the fittings that are all thin. Well mine are not, they are old red brass, so those aren't an issue either. But the point is, the old copper pipes may be fine, but they tend to weaken over time as the water changes directions at 90's, and it can eventually "drill" a hole through. That's where they fail. Or so he said. I have found new copper fittings to be very thin and easy to bend. They don't make 'em like they used to...

[zamler]

The details are vague but I remember a plumber talking about how if there is excessive solder it causes cavitation and eventually wears right through the pipe.