Avoiding frozen water pipes while furnace is broken

[jroc]

Our furnace has been on the fritz since this cold snap started, and the repairman has been out twice to try to fix it. Last night we thought we were in the clear when he replaced the induction motor (I think thats what it was), but it clunked out again last night at about 2:00AM.

They'll be making another trip out, hopefully by 12:30 or 1:00, but with the temp at -30 outside and my thermostat reading at 13 degrees, should I start getting concerned about frozen pipes?

Getting a little chilly here with the wife, baby and toddler at home. Any tips or suggestions?

[CroFlames]

I'm not an expert and there are others who will know better...

I would immediately zip to Home Depot and buy the biggest space heater with every intention of returning it later.

I have a baby and toddler living in an older house and the furnace is working, and it's still chilly.

####, if I had a space heater I'd drive it over to your house right now. Hopefully someone can lend you some type of electric heater immediately. If not, just go buy something with a cc and return it.

Sorry to hear about this man.

[CaptainCrunch]

Jeez sorry to hear that. With pipes near the outside wall it could be a concern, maybe keep the water moving through the pipes. Maybe open the doors to all of your cabinets that have water pipes in your kitchen, bathroom etc so warm air can get it.


Stay warm, I hope they fix your furnace.

[InglewoodFan]

I've always heard that you can leave a tap running low to keep a pipe from freezing. The flowing water in the pipe can bring a continuous source of warmer water to a place where freezing might happen. Fun fact, your water supply to the house is about 6-8C given that it is buried in the ground.

[DownhillGoat]

Leave a couple taps cracked open.

Alternatively, when my furnace died I shut the water off, drained everything, and set up a space heater near the shutoff valve.

Also, to get a little bit of warmth in the house, you could fire up the oven on self-clean or broil.

[krynski]

13 degrees is still ok, I would get concerned if it hits below ~7. Definitely do not panic about pipes at 13.

If it does drop, start thinking about moving water in the lines by opening faucets.

[SportsJunky]

Off topic but now, with the avatar change, I confuse CroFlames with CaptainCrunch.

[DownhillGoat]

Also, since they're heading out to repair today anyway, there's a few easy troubleshooting options:

- Try running it without a furnace filter. They can get plugged and cause a DP across it, which will lock it out (and burn out motors)
- Can also try the obvious turn it off, turn it back on again. I've had mine act up and just needed a reset on the thermostat panel.

[Erick Estrada]

Hopefully you don't have poly-B piping.

[jroc]

Thanks all!

Definitely ran out to 'borrow' some space heaters from Canadian Tire. Repair guy just showed up so hopefully it's fixed for good this time!

[RichieRich]

Originally Posted by jroc

Thanks all!

Definitely ran out to 'borrow' some space heaters from Canadian Tire. Repair guy just showed up so hopefully it's fixed for good this time!

Let us know how it turns out... and what the furnace issue was.
Over the years we've had a furnace go out due to induction motor (replaced this past fall), a newly-dead thermocouple, a dirty fire-eye (flame-sensor). With two NG fireplaces in the house (basement/main) we turned them on full, fired up a couple space heaters, closed all the blinds/curtains (extra insulation), and basically were ok for a day or so. As others have pointed out, piping into your house is buried year round and so is fairly constant at ~6-8°C. Instead it's the static fluid in your outer walls that's of concern... so a periodic flush and/or slow drip for movement would buy more time.

[Nancy]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

I'm not an expert and there are others who will know better...

I would immediately zip to Home Depot and buy the biggest space heater with every intention of returning it later.

I have a baby and toddler living in an older house and the furnace is working, and it's still chilly.

####, if I had a space heater I'd drive it over to your house right now. Hopefully someone can lend you some type of electric heater immediately. If not, just go buy something with a cc and return it.

Sorry to hear about this man.

120V ones are almost all 1500 watts regardless of size, so you are better off buying a fleet of cheaper, smaller ones, and spreading them around the house. You may have some trial and error with not having them on the same breaker.

[CroFlames]

Originally Posted by SportsJunky

Off topic but now, with the avatar change, I confuse CroFlames with CaptainCrunch.

I've been confused with CroFlames and CaptainCrunch for a few weeks now too.

[jroc]

Originally Posted by RichieRich

Let us know how it turns out... and what the furnace issue was.
Over the years we've had a furnace go out due to induction motor (replaced this past fall), a newly-dead thermocouple, a dirty fire-eye (flame-sensor). With two NG fireplaces in the house (basement/main) we turned them on full, fired up a couple space heaters, closed all the blinds/curtains (extra insulation), and basically were ok for a day or so. As others have pointed out, piping into your house is buried year round and so is fairly constant at ~6-8°C. Instead it's the static fluid in your outer walls that's of concern... so a periodic flush and/or slow drip for movement would buy more time.

Thanks!

Got it fixed up for the time being. Now replaced the pressure switch (or something similar sounding. I have no clue) at no additional cost, so that was nice.

He's advising me to run out to Home Depot ASAP to pick up some insulation for my intake/exhaust vents as they're just fully exposed PVC. We also have a weird setup, as we have a bi-level, so the pipes run out of the house about 5 feet off the ground, then run under the deck for about 12-15 feet before they end. Mentioned that he's surprised it didn't get picked up by our home inspection back in the spring as that is totally not legit at all!

[GoinAllTheWay]

Man modern furnaces sound like such a PITA.....

[Barnes]

Originally Posted by jroc

Thanks!

Got it fixed up for the time being. Now replaced the pressure switch (or something similar sounding. I have no clue) at no additional cost, so that was nice.

He's advising me to run out to Home Depot ASAP to pick up some insulation for my intake/exhaust vents as they're just fully exposed PVC. We also have a weird setup, as we have a bi-level, so the pipes run out of the house about 5 feet off the ground, then run under the deck for about 12-15 feet before they end. Mentioned that he's surprised it didn't get picked up by our home inspection back in the spring as that is totally not legit at all!

Insulation for the pipes inside or out? My intake inside has some condensation and a little bit of ice on them in the basement.

[Svartsengi]

Some good suggestions in this thread. Hopefully fixed for good now. If it does start acting up again try checking the port window located typically on bottom half of furnace. It will have a set pattern of blinking lights with a legend indicating type of fault. One green plus two red or 2 blue plus 3 orange or something similar to it. Will narrow the problem down quicker and you can tell them what light sequence you are seeing so repair guy will have correct parts on him and not have to make a return trip.

[jroc]

Originally Posted by Barnes

Insulation for the pipes inside or out? My intake inside has some condensation and a little bit of ice on them in the basement.

They run 12 feet on the outside.

[jroc]

Originally Posted by Svartsengi

Some good suggestions in this thread. Hopefully fixed for good now. If it does start acting up again try checking the port window located typically on bottom half of furnace. It will have a set pattern of blinking lights with a legend indicating type of fault. One green plus two red or 2 blue plus 3 orange or something similar to it. Will narrow the problem down quicker and you can tell them what light sequence you are seeing so repair guy will have correct parts on him and not have to make a return trip.

Ya, I saw those blinking lights as well as the legend. 'pressure switch open with inducer on' is the indicator. I looked at a YouTube video before the service call and it was over my head! I'd hope the repair guys know how to follow the indicator lights and legend!

Anyways, quick update, from the time the repair guy booted it back up with the new pressure switch to the time I got home with the insulation, it had already crapped out again. He's swinging by one more time tonight to boot it up and to hopefully see if the insulation will do the trick. Wish us luck through the night!

Between the 3 space heaters we 'borrowed', we were able to keep it at 18 degrees through the early evening, so that's a plus.

[Calgary14]

What make and model is the furnace and how old is it?