How Remote Temperature Monitoring Prevents Frozen Pipes

It is your responsibility as the owner to monitor your home while you’re away. Installing remote temperature monitoring systems can help you keep a safe temperature on your property and avoid a disastrous winter episode.

As the dread of winter is still lingering. Apart from people fighting the cold, the houses are not invincible to the damaging properties of winter. As the most problematic of them all is the freezing of pipes. Frozen water expands, resulting in the pipe bursting and flooding the area around it. Your best bet is to prevent pipes from freezing in the first place. There are many preventative actions that can mitigate the risk of frozen pipes. If you are at home, doing these preventative actions is fairly easy. But it’s way different if you are going to be away during these cold times, so you better prepare an alternative.

Ways to Prevent the Freezing of Pipes

Insulate the pipes

The most important but probably the most difficult is to properly insulate the pipes. Not all pipes are vulnerable to freezing, external protruding pipes are. They are the ones in need of insulating materials that block the cold and maintain normal heat. Insulation materials can be fiberglass, polyethylene, or foam. They can be installed by a professional, but when it calls for an emergency, some materials like duct tape and newspaper can patch a temporary solution.

Keep faucets dripping

Stucked water in the pipe gives room for freezing. So to counter that, leave the faucets dripping. It may add a bit to the water bill but at least it offsets the possibility of frozen pipes which is way costly. Also, not all faucets should be kept running. Determine the faucets whose pipes are exposed to freezing. Running water can prevent ice from forming as it generates a bit of heat contrary to standing water. 

Keep Interior Doors Open

Interiors doors such as cabinets can further lock the space into a solitary low temperature. Everything inside can freeze such as the pipes down the drain. Closed cabinet doors prevent room heaters to take effect inside dwindling the temperature to alarming zeros. Some rooms like the kitchen or pantry can be left open too to prevent such occurrences. Not just the pipes but a number of items can be spared from freezing with a simple act of leaving interior doors open. 

Heat consistency

The heater plays a big role in preventing not just pipe-freezing but also keeping the whole household warm. But for it to be very effective, you must keep the same level of temperatures most of the time. Otherwise, cold air can sneak in and damage the pipes. Heat consistency however can be a problem in itself during the winter months. When the owners are not home, temperatures can fluctuate too much that the stable heat may not be as effective. There needs to be someone to change heater levels when necessary. 

Remote Temperature Monitoring Adds a Layer of Comfort

The heater, thermostats, and other solutions mentioned are helpful only when someone is manning the house. Otherwise, these solutions can be very tough to implement remotely. Monitoring companies have come up with systems designed to address these problems in the form of remote temperature monitoring solutions. It comes in all forms and purposes. In the case of a frozen pipe, a remote temperature monitoring act as the communication system that controls and manage the heating elements inside the house. Even though the owner is physically distant, a single tap of a finger can help the owner evaluate and fix the situation.

How Remote temperature Monitoring Prevents Frozen Pipes?

1. Remote Evaluation 

Even from a distance, owners can determine the situation of their households. Actively knowing the circumstances in their location can help prevent damages. Also, It gives comfort to owners knowing that their house is safe and sound from the ravaging effects of winter while they’re gone. 

2. Sending Alerts

Even if the owners chose not to actively see their location’s situations, remote sensors are engineered to send alerts at the slightest hint of problems. The most important of them all is the ability to know in real-time when problems occur. This is especially important if the owners have no time to check on. Thermostats are designed to be sensitive enough to the slightest changes in temperature surrounding the device. And it doesn’t wait for alarming signs, it already sends changes to the owners and management. 

3. Control the Settings

Some homeowners may choose to change the settings of the sensors. This is possible with most remote temperature systems where you can adjust the temperature of your house. You can lock the settings and buttons so no one can tweak it. Level up the heat when the temperature is dwindling or lower the heat down when the cold level is not that damaging. Whatever you choose to do to fix the temperature situations, you can do it all remotely.  If the heat is up and running or if it’s dwindling to negative zeros, owners can react immediately preventing further damages.

Other minor advantages of a remote-controlled thermostat are the following: 

• They can send reminders when to clean the HVAC systems and filters
• They can know your location, time of arrival, and adjust the temperatures accordingly.
• They can determine other factors such as humidity levels, water leaks, power failures, and potential break-ins. 

Keeping a remote-controlled thermostat in your arsenal is an effective way to prevent pipe damage during the winter. You make sure that the temperature is above 55°C (131°F) as winter months can get deep cold. Remote monitoring systems can update you if there’s a breach in the temperature range. In this case, you can crank up the heat even higher. 

Conclusion

The ability to monitor from a distance ultimately saves money and life. The dangers of a freezing home are more than just a frozen pipe. Sometimes, it can lead to dangers like electrocution, hypothermia, etc. It doesn’t have to go this far. Prevention is always superior to cure. And the preventive measures afforded by remote monitoring make them necessary. 

Remote monitoring systems eliminate money-draining problems. Sure, winter has its own sets of problems that make electricity bills way expensive. But spending to get that warm comfortable household doesn’t have to rake that much. Going for remote temperature monitoring devices is even the more practical choice.

References: 

https://www.sensaphone.com/industries/residential/example/remote-temperature-monitoring

https://www.thebalancesmb.com/stop-freezing-pipes-2124982