Hi Jo,
Looks like you have done all that can be reasonably expected and if any water left in the pipes freezes, the damage will be localized and limited. I don't expect your insurers would quibble about paying for any repairs, but it might be a good idea to talk to them and ask them what precautions they think you should take.
Flushing the toilets, after turning off the water, will empty most of the water from the cisterns, but you still have to leave water in the traps of the toilet bowls. Adding a tablespoon of salt will prevent freezing in all but an extended sub-zero spell.
If your heating is properly installed, it will be separated from the water supply to your taps ("faucets" , "robinets"). But even if you add anti-freeze to the heating system, you will still need to drain the pipes for the drinking and washing water supply. However, using anti-freeze in your heating system is a good idea, because it should also contain corrosion inhibitors. Refilling with fresh water every year introduces oxygen, causing corrosion in the radiators.
Insulation or lagging does not "warm" pipes, it just extends the time it takes for the cold to penetrate. So it may help to prevent freezing in a situation of everyday use, but not in an extended sub-zero period while the property is unoccupied.
good morning Jo. Suggest you look up FERNOX.uk on the Internet who not only supply a full range of water treatments for water heating systems but they also supply an excellent help service as well. They have a French outlet but the UK site is best for advice for non techies. You will find all your questions answered by experts. Depending on the size of your system the additives are not too dear if you take into consideration the costs of a serious water leak and loss of heating.
Before you contact them make a survey of your system and the materials used in its construction as the treatments vary for different materials and plastics.
I have no connection with them other than being a very satisfied user for over 25 years in Wimbledon UK (Cast Iron),Kelowna, Canada (aluminium) and Marco, America (Copper).
Regards, Malcolm
Worth having someone locally to go round and check all well in case of power cuts?
Hi Mike
We drained our pipes this time - the first time we have ever done it. Our neighbour did it the time before that. We turned off the mains, opened up all the faucets so that air can flow through and drained it at the lowest point (some sort of special tap I think). We also flushed our toilet multiple times to get as much water out as possible. Do you think this would suffice for the water taps.
Originally I wanted the heating left on defrost to prevent burst pipes after hearing horror stories from the very cold winter but then was scared about the radiators busting. We like the old style of things and like the old radiators so don't want to have to change them over for new looking ones.
Hi,
You can actually buy anti-freeze, just like you do for your car, quickly looking on web it can go down to -20, You basically take some water out and add it to your system, there will be a bit of maths involved to get the right percentages, you need just enough in to stop freezing, down side is when system in use the efficiency of heat transfer is not as good, which means heat upi time takes just a bit longer, but that's a lot better than ripping split pipes out
Graham
Don't cut corners on this one whatever you do. We live in Burgundy (yes the winters are a little colder) and a French neighbour went to Paris for the winter...and turned off her boiler. The results was two cellars full of water, a new boiler, 29 radiators and a bill for €56,000 and rising......
A bit extreme maybe but froststat settings on all your heating is a good idea. Constant draining and refilling is hard on the system; water is always left somewhere and it takes the tiniest little bit to blow a joint. Make sure when you refill that the inhibitor is not too concentrated as this will rot joints too.
I have the same problem. Twenty years living in the tropics has made me a bit of a wimp when it comes to the cold. I'm not sure what the ideal solution is other than to leave the heating on a timer and the radiators either turned down (if individual thermostats) or the thermostat left around 10oC and then have someone go in to the house to check on a regular basis.
Hi Tony - did you end up taking your plumber's advice and putting the anti freeze in?
Did you used to leave your house over winter and it was still ok?
Cheers
Thanks Mike
Your poor friends - ouch.
Thanks Glen
The radiators may already have the anti freeze in them. I think the system is just put on for the water pipes throughout the house. Will see if the real estate agent can find out for us.
Is it something we could do ourselves or is it best to get a plumber. Would the plumbers insurance cover any mishaps? We have been stung on water damage to the house because the previous owner used an un licensed builder with no insurance so our insurance cannot cover it. Happy days.
Do you know how much we would be looking at for 20 litres and a plumber to do it? Are you a plumber in France?
Hi Carol - we do have a neighbour that turns it on when it starts to get cold and then turns if off when the weather warms up but I think it is a bit much to ask them to go up and down putting it on and off for cold snaps unless like you said we get someone and pay them to do it. We were going to pay someone to take care of the house like you say and arranged to meet with him when we went to pick the keys. He was suppose to come on a Sunday and did not show up until the following Thursday so we were sat around on our holiday waiting for him. It kind of put me off on their reliability - I know I should not tar everyone with the same brush. Will see how we go when we are there soon and see what we think.
Thanks Katherine - I am glad your insurer still covered you. That is my biggest dread.
Hi Angela
That does help and it sounds like the problem you have with the boiler being left on and the oil being used in high dosages is what is happening to us. I believe ours are the old heavy steel ones - they look that way.
Our house is an old house with thick walls - it does feel cold inside but then I feel cold in anything less than 18 degrees LOL.
Thanks Michael. We are not sure where the temperature is being read from ie inside or outside at the generator. There is a little control panel (no idea how it works) and a thermostat on the actual generator in the garage which says 10 degrees. The one inside states whatever the room temperature is at the time (with or without the generators on).
The lady we bought the house off of said it was set to "defrost" at 8 degrees but it just seems to kick in all the time.
Thanks Brian.
I am not sure if they are from the mains as we turn the water off when we are not at the house but I do think they are the old fashion ones. There are pipes coming down to them - does that mean they are refilled from the mains?
Makes us feel better turning it off if we go that way knowing that you have not had any problems.
Nobody Has mentioned 2 stage frost protection which was a norm when I was designing. Stage 1 is a thermostat, clamp on OK but immersion better, which switches on the pump at about 2 deg. Moving water freezes less quickly than static & any heat gains from "warm" rooms are shared with colder ones so pipes & rads are protected at this level. Stage 2 is a good air thermostat ( small differential room stat maybe) that fires up boiler if room temperature falls to freezing. The system is of course only any good if one still has a power supply & does not protect pipes outside of the heated envelope. The other problem with any form of single stat. protection is the difficulty in deciding on a representative space to site the stat. Anybody with the standard type of 3 or 4 way hand operated mixing valve set up which is common in France should investigate motorising this valve & fitting an optimum start/stop control which will have the above frost protection & more built into it's control capability. Big fuel ecconomys are possible with this intelligent self learning type of control. Not cheap but well worth considering for a large property.
If the electricity fails the heating system will not function so frost stat no good then
So best to go for Anti Freeze
Actually Mike, you have just hit the nail on the head. Those are the pipes most likely to burst because they may be frozen in the supply outside. In fact, the main stopcock is often very vulnerable here. Outside connections are really at risk in general. We have one that was used for a hose previously that went during the cold spell in the autumn which I managed to cap. Now we are going to remove the whole section of pipe outside this summer. Central heating is seldom vulnerable because no matter how cold outside, if a house is closed up properly and everything is properly lagged or inside wall cavities, behind plasterboard and so on, it is only ever going to freeze at the very lowest temperatures, even the most extreme winters are not cold enough for that. But your point is the crucial one Mike, including porcelain and some brittle plastics.
Anti-freeze is not always the solution. What would we do? Our Rayburn heats all water for both the central heating and household supply. Both are sourced from the same main source, in fact interconnected. Older houses have one for all purposes water, we simply replaced the old stove and kept the old system because the pipework is good. Check to see before leaping into the wrong thing. Also, it ain't Norway...