[Charity]

Like most of the eastern half of the country, we’ve gotten hit with the polar vortex. Living in an older home, this means leaving the taps dripping… 24/7…

After a week of nauseously watching my money literally go down the drain, I found a solution.

Use a bucket to collect the drips (if you use something with a spout it can be lined up to avoid the dripping sound!), once the bucket is full empty it into either a plugged tub or 5g bucket.

Then use the collected water to flush the toilet, water plants/pets, wash dishes, anything to avoid it just going down the drain.

[Tina]

I always filled the washer with the dripping water I collected.

[Tami]

We also have to open our cabinet to our kitchen sink in winter bc it’s on an outside wall. If you open the cabinets you may be able to NOT have to leave it dripping.

We live in a northern state in the midwest and deal with cold winters and live in country where it’s always even colder, but we just leave doors open to sink cabinets and water has never froze yet.

Not saying you should do this, but just saying is all.

[Veronica]

Well damn. I just turned all the faucets off since we’re finally above freezing. I’ll remember this.

I wish I could show my neighbors because they didn’t leave their faucets dripping and they have the disaster people out trying to dry their house out!

[Sandy]

We open our cabinet doors here in NW Pa. But I also fould some pieces of insulation board and put behind the pipes against the wall.

And got the grey foam pipe insulation tube’s and added to the exposed pipes.

[Eric]

hell yeah, same as when running H2O waiting for the hot water to arrive.

It goes in a bucket to flush.

[Sheila]

Fantastic. Hsvd done thst the last few years. Water plants, laundry, flush toilets, etc

[Marie]

I leave my tap dripping the cats won’t drink water from a bowl. It’s stops me getting froze up I live in a static caravan

[Mary]

Excellent idea!! You can tie a string or dental floss to the spigot if the dripping is annoying.

[Rachel]

Confused as to why cold temps would mean leaving the water dripping in a non-mobile home.

I have a 100+ year old home with just plywood where the basement windows should go, a mix of copper, a bit of pex, and mostly rusty cast iron plumbing and I’ve never experienced this.

We can get weeks of negative temps in the winter.

Is it perhaps where your plumbing is located in the home? We have none in exterior walls except for the outside faucet that we added a basement shut off valve to and drain in the fall.

[Author]

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