I noticed my cold water lines to the upstairs bathroom were frozen last Monday. After leaving the heat cranked high, the toilet and the sink thawed. But the cold water line to the tub is still frozen.
I've had the heat on almost 24/7 for the last week, I've left the hot water to the tub dripping, and I've put a space heater right by the visible cold water pipe, along with the hair dryer tip and it still as not thawed.
Today is the first day since Monday that it has been above 32 degrees, currently it is 45 degrees,so I'm hoping it will finally thaw today. I have noticed that the cold water does drip, and I might be imagining it but I feel like the dripping is speeding up. So I don't think the pipe is completely blocked, which is hopefully a good thing.
But tomorrow is going to be below freezing again, and it will stay that way for the next week.
If I can't get it to thaw today, should I call a plumber? The longer it stays frozen, the more nervous I become about it. But my mom told me that there is nothing a plumber can do until it bursts. Is that true?
Of course, maybe it's not frozen. Maybe it's an air pocket. If that's the case, can a plumber fix it without putting holes in the walls/floors? Because ideally I would like to avoid that.
Thanks for any help!
Best Answer
I would only call a plumber if the purpose was to have the plumber reroute the lines to an interior wall where the pipes will not freeze. I can't see paying someone $100 an hour plus for holding a hair dryer or mini-blow torch next to a pipe to get it to thaw. Your plumber plumbs not perform magic.
If your pipes are freezing to this extent though I think that you will eventually need to have things reworked. Spend your plumbing money on this.