Generally this happens by mid October however this year it seems to be happening in September, the overnight temperature drops below zero; the lawn mowing is done for another year and most of the yard work has been completed. Alas there is but one last small, but important, chore to do!
Turn off the flow of water to the outside faucets, and then open the valve on the outside to drain the water from the valve. This will prevent freezing. Also check to ensure that there is adequate insulation surrounding the pipe connections at the outside wall, since this is where they usually burst.
This is also a good time to drain the garden hose prior to storage.
Since more and more homes have sump pumps, Fall is also a great time to check and ensure proper operation of the pumps…come Spring it will be too late to avoid a flood.
Since most pumps have automatic float switches, checking operation is easy. Simply raised the float ball and the pump should start to run. Should it not work, unplug the automatic switch adapter and plug the pump cord directly into the wall and lift the float ball again, if the pump runs, replace the auto-switch.
If the pump doesn’t run, either the float switch or the pump itself may require replacement. Both of which are available at Revy.
This 10 minute check could potentially save you hundreds of dollars in flood clean up charges come spring.