A faucet runs slowly, or not at all, on a cold morning
Find which fixtures are affected
If only one sink or one bathroom has no water, the frozen section is probably in the wall or space that serves it.
Locate your main shutoff
Know exactly where it is, and that it turns, before you start thawing. A split pipe leaks the moment the ice melts.
Open the affected faucet
A slightly open faucet lets melting water and pressure escape, and it tells you when flow returns.
Warm the area gently
Open the cabinet doors, warm the room and apply gentle heat to the pipe you can reach, starting nearest the faucet and working back.
Watch for leaks as flow returns
Check under the sink, the wall behind it and the room below. A split often shows itself within minutes of thawing.
Call a plumber if you can't reach it
If the frozen section sits inside a closed wall, or you see a bulging pipe, let a plumber handle the thaw.
Why some Lakewood houses freeze more easily
Post-war ranches often put kitchen and bathroom plumbing on outside walls with modest insulation by today's standards. Bathrooms over an attached garage, laundry rooms on a slab at the edge of the house and hose bibs on the north side are the classic trouble spots. In a split-level, the lowest level may have pipes running through a crawlspace that vents to the outside.
Front Range weather adds a twist. A sunny afternoon can drop into a hard freeze overnight, and arctic air can sit on the metro for days. Pipes that were fine for years can freeze in an unusually cold stretch, especially if someone left a window cracked or the garage door open, or turned the heat down while the house sat empty.
Common weak spots and simple protection
| Location | Why it freezes | Protection to discuss with a plumber |
|---|---|---|
| Hose bib on a north wall | Cold air reaches the valve and the short pipe inside the wall | Disconnect hoses in fall; consider a frost-free sillcock |
| Kitchen sink on an exterior wall | Thin wall insulation behind the cabinet | Open the cabinet doors in a cold snap; add insulation if the wall gets opened |
| Bathroom over a garage | Garage air runs close to outdoor temperature | Keep the garage door closed; insulate the garage ceiling |
| Crawlspace supply lines | Vents let in freezing air | Pipe insulation, and closing vents in winter where appropriate |
| Swamp cooler supply tube | Runs through an unheated attic | Drain it and shut it off before the first hard freeze |
Before you leave the house in winter
- Keep the thermostat at a reasonable setting, not off.
- Disconnect garden hoses and close the indoor valves to outdoor faucets.
- Ask a neighbor to check the house if you'll be gone during a cold stretch.
- For long trips, consider shutting off the main and draining the lines.
- Consider a water leak sensor near the fixtures most likely to freeze.
General information for Lakewood, not a quote or professional advice. In an emergency, call 911.