How to protect your home from freezing temperatures:
- Keep the thermostat up: Keep the thermostat at a minimum of 68°F. If you’ll be away during cold weather, leave the heat on at a temperature no lower than 55°F.
- Drip faucets: Let faucets drip slightly to prevent freezing.
- Open cabinets: Open kitchen and sink cabinets surrounding pipes to allow warm air to surround them.
- Disconnect and drain hoses: Disconnect hoses from spigots, faucets and sprayers. Completely drain any remaining water from the hoses.
- Protect exterior water pipes from freezing: Drip exterior faucets (slow droplets or slow streams of water) and turn off irrigation systems to help reduce damage from freezing and breaking.
- Run fans: Run ceiling fans in reverse to help bring down warm air near the ceiling.
- Locate and familiarize yourself with your water shut-off valve: In case of a burst pipe know where your water shut-off valve is and how to turn it off.
How to protect your plants from freezing temperatures:
- Water: Before a freeze, water the soil around the base of your plants to help insulate them.
- Cover: Use a frost cloth, blanket, bed sheet, burlap, or other material to cover your plants. Do not use plastic. Make sure the covering reaches the ground and is secure. Cover plants before nightfall to trap warm air. Remove the covering once temperatures rise above freezing.
- Bring indoors: Move potted plants to a sheltered area like a porch, under an awning, or inside. If you bring them inside, place them near a window that gets sunlight
For more information on how to protect your plants during cold weather click here
–Tidelines Editors
(Image credit: Delmarfans.com)