Say It Ain’t Snow! In addition to 10-12 more inches of snow, forecasters are predicting high winds tomorrow that they expect to lead to additional power outages and snow drifts up to 4 feet. If your home loses power and you decide to temporarily vacate, follow the instructions below to prevent damage to your home.
1) Locate your main water valve and turn the valve off
a. Open all of the faucets in the home and flush all of the toilets by holding the handle down until most of the water is drained out.
i. Get all of the water out of the bowls to prevent breakage
ii. DO NOT pour any automobile anti freeze into the drain piping
2) Turn the water heater to its lowest setting
a. If gas, it is the large know on the control that shows temperature
b. If electric, turn off the breaker
3) If you have hot water or steam heat.
a. Radiators and system piping is very susceptible to freezing and breaking. There really is nothing you can do except hope the power comes on before damage occurs.
b. DO NOT turn the electric off. Leave the thermostat set at 68*
Electrical Surge
It is very important to help protect your electric equipment. Once the main power starts to try to come back on, it usually sends a surge down the line because everything is calling at once. You will notice this by the power popping on and off. Here are a couple of very easy things to do that will help prevent surge damage:
1) If you have a well pump, and know where the electric switch is, turn the switch off.
a. Once the power stops popping & off and decides to stay on, then you can power it back up
2) If you have a Heat pump and you know where the breaker is, turn that off
a. Once the power stops popping & off and decides to stay on, then you can power it back up
