In a house lived in all year round, the system has to be checked so that the entry pipe, caisson or pump room does not freeze. In Riga and the Riga region we do both, and in spring we start the system up again.
What freezing damages most
- A surface pump and a pump station: the body cracks if water stays in it.
- The pressure tank: the membrane and the connection, and the vessel itself can deform too.
- Filter housings and cartridges, the valves and vessels of iron removal and softening units.
- The water heater and its safety valve.
- Pipes and taps in unheated rooms, the outdoor tap, shower mixers, the toilet cistern.
Water expands by about a tenth when it freezes, so a few centimetres of water in a pump body are enough to split it.
Draining a summer house system: the order
- Power We switch off the pump and water heater circuit breakers so nobody switches on an empty pump or water heater.
- Source We close the valve after the pump or, if the pump is submerged in a borehole or a well, the valve at the entry.
- Pipes We open all taps, starting from the top floor, and drain the water through the drain valve at the lowest point. We blow out water left in the bends with a compressor.
- Pump and pressure tank We drain the water from the pump through the drain plug and from the pressure tank. A pump station on a spike well (“spice” in Latvian) is often better taken off and stored somewhere warm.
- Filters and water heater We remove the cartridges and drain the filter housings and the water heater. For iron removal and softening units we follow the manufacturer's instructions; if they cannot be drained, they need a room that does not freeze.
- Notes We drain the toilet cistern, leave the outdoor tap open and write down what was removed and which taps were left open, so the system can be started in spring without surprises.
Spike well, dug well and borehole in winter
With a spike well and a surface pump, water also stands in the spike well pipe itself and in the suction pipe. After taking off the pump we disconnect the non-return valve so the water in the above-ground part drains back, and we close and insulate the top of the spike well. On spike wells for summer houses: spike well for a summer house.
A submersible borehole pump sits below the frost level and stays in the borehole. We drain the pipe to the house if it is not deep enough, and check the insulation of the borehole head or the caisson. In a well the pump can stay if it is under water and the pipe leaves the well below the frost depth; we insulate the well cover.
For a house lived in all year round: the autumn check
- the pressure tank pre-charge and the membrane;
- whether the temperature in the pump room, the caisson and at the entry stays above zero in winter;
- whether the heating cable works and whether the insulation is soaked or damaged by rodents;
- whether there is water in the caisson and the cover closes tightly;
- shutting off and draining the outdoor tap;
- the state of the filters, so that cartridges do not have to be changed in a frost.
How to check the pressure tank yourself: water pump switches on too often. If the water pipe freezes anyway: frozen water pipe.
If you also use the summer house in winter
If you visit the summer house now and then in winter, the system can be left drained and filled for the time you are there. The other way is to build a system that survives the winter: a pipe below the frost depth, an insulated entry and one room for the pump and the pressure tank that is kept above zero. That is more convenient, but it needs constant heating or a heating cable. We discuss the rebuild after an inspection: water supply system installation for a private house.
Spring start-up
In spring we close the drain valves, fit the cartridges, prime the pump, check the pressure tank pre-charge and switch the system on with a tap open. Then we check for leaks and whether the pump switches off. If the water is cloudy or smells after winter and this does not go away after running the water, we recommend a test: water testing.
How much winterising costs
We name the price after your request, because it depends on the size of the system. That means how many water points and floors the house has, whether there is a water heater and filters, whether the pump has to be taken off and stored, and whether drain valves are fitted or need adding. If we also agree on the spring start-up, we plan both jobs together. Other prices: prices.