With the onset of winter and low temperatures, many owners of private houses have to deal with the problem of freezing water pipes and sewer systems on the site. And while the problem is more common among homeowners outside the city, city dwellers also face it.
The appearance of ice formations inside the pipes does not allow further comfortable operation of the engineering product and as a result can lead to its damage. To prevent freezing of the water supply and sewerage network and ensure their uninterrupted operation, it is important to take some preventive measures even before the onset of cold weather. If the first frosts have already come, then there will be only one way out - defrosting the pipes. It can be done by several methods at once.
Why do pipes freeze?
The main reason for freezing of pipes and the formation of ice inside them are gross violations during the design and installation of the system without preliminary calculation operations. It is possible to ensure that the pipes function properly and prevent them from freezing with the onset of cold weather, if you strictly follow the rules of SNiP, which are detaileddescribe how to lay the pipeline into the ground. They say that:
- the depth of laying the pipeline should not be less than the depth of soil freezing at the place of residence;
- if pipes are used irregularly in winter, all water must be removed from them;
- it is also important to take care of the insulation of pipes near the entrance to the house.
In addition to non-compliance with the installation rules, the sewer can freeze from time to time due to the filling of the sewage pit or water leakage due to a malfunction of the plumbing system. Also, regular blockages that appear due to incorrect selection of the pipe diameter can lead to failure of the engineering installation.
Freezing of pipes under pressure can only occur when the temperature of the ground nearby is negative. In this case, it will not make sense to defrost the pipes without subsequent insulation, since after some time they will freeze again.
It is possible to prevent the formation of ice in the installation and pipes in conditions of constant freezing of the soil by means of an electric heating system. The principle of operation of such a system lies in the use of a special self-regulation cable, which is laid along the entire length of the pipes or wrapped around them.
Before you start to deal with the cause of freezing of the system, it is important to defrost the sewer and water pipes. It can be done in several ways.
Features of defrosting sewer pipes
When systemspipes were not insulated in a timely manner, with a sharp drop in air temperature outside, the water remaining inside them can freeze, and then turn into ice. But even if this happened, you should not immediately panic: everything can still be fixed, even without resorting to the help of a master.
If the pipes are frozen at a shallow depth and can be easily reached, then a simple hair dryer should be used to help warm the surface to the desired temperature. It is much more difficult to defrost water pipes that are underground. Freezing at the entrance area can be broken through if only the walls of the house are warmed up, but quite often the freezing area is located a few centimeters from it.
To defrost heating pipes, experts recommend using a device such as a building hair dryer (if it is not on the farm, you can use a simple homemade), blowtorch, electric heater.
There are a lot of methods. According to the reviews of the owners of private houses who carried out a similar procedure, when defrosting steel water pipes, the whole process is quite easy. To do this, welding is connected from two opposite sides of the system, which leads to thawing of the liquid inside the water supply system in just 3-4 hours. The time of the defrosting process will directly depend on the length of the pipe. Recently, however, plastic pipes are often built into the plumbing system, which can withstand pressures of no higher than 10 atmospheres.
Although such structures are not damaged by freezing, it is forbidden to defrost plastic pipes with a welding machine. Also, for the purpose of punching a cork, it is not recommended to use an iron rod, otherwise there is a high risk of simply ruining the water supply.
Heated from outside
This is another way that the owners of private houses recommend using in their reviews in case of pipe freezing. With the heating method, it will be necessary to break the frozen soil, which is considered the main drawback. But for cases where the frozen area has a small area, this method can be quite effective.
After the hole is dug, the type of material the plumbing is made of is determined. To work with polymer structures, it is best to use heating devices powered by electricity and delivering temperatures from 100 to 1000 degrees Celsius. To reduce the heat loss rate of the heater and warm up the sewer section in a short time, the place of work should be covered with a layer of thermal insulation.
When defrosting sewer pipes made of metallic material, the defrosting process takes much less time. This is because in this case it is allowed to use an open flame source: a gas burner, wood, a soldering iron and any other devices that are strictly prohibited for plastic.
Defrosting heating pipes from the inside
To warm up the system from the inside, experts in their reviews advise home-grown craftsmen to take into accountsome features. To begin with, it is important to remember that such systems most often have a large diameter, which helps to warm up the outside and inside much faster. However, the amount of accumulated ice in them will be much greater, because a large amount of heat will be required by the pipe defrosting machines.
When defrosting plastic installations, you can use a fairly simple device. To do this, a board with rounded edges is taken and a heating element in the shape of the letter U is installed on it. Only the heater loop should protrude beyond the built-in board. All other parts must not touch the wall of the heating equipment in any way.
After determining the thickness of the accumulated ice and the distance to it, a wire of the required length is attached to the end of the heating element, and the rest of the structure is fixed on a metal-plastic system. Next, we will push the device into the sewer.
Introduce the finished structure into a pipe with blockage of ice should be from the side of the receiver, into which the thawed water will drain. To begin with, the heating element advances to the end to the place of work, and then it is connected to the power system. Moving the wire forward along the pipe as the plug thaws, the equipment is turned off from time to time.
Steel pipe tool
The most effective and labor-intensive method of removing ice from the pipe cavity, judging by the reviews, will be the use of an industrial device. However, to bring a result without damaging the property, it can onlycase with metal pipes. In order to defrost the cork, terminals are attached to the ends of the frozen pipe, through which current is subsequently supplied. As the pipe heats up, the ice accumulated inside begins to melt. One of these devices can be called the "Dragon" apparatus for defrosting pipes.
The defrosting time will directly depend on the length and diameter of the unit. For example, for pipes with a cross section of up to 6 centimeters and a length of 23 meters, it will take about an hour for the device to work. If the pipeline diameter is greater than the set value, then the distance between the terminals is reduced. This applies to sections with measuring devices as well as cutting areas. It is mandatory to check the presence of pressure inside the water supply system.
Along with the generally accepted methods of defrosting water pipes, some people use other, less popular ones. All of them bring a good effect, but only on pipes with a small section.
Pouring boiling water
The boiler for defrosting pipes is not as easy as it might seem at first. To get the result, you will have to make some efforts. To supply hot water to the ice accumulation area, you need to use a special flexible hose or cable to defrost pipes. For example, if ice stagnation has formed on a straight section of the system with a diameter of 25 to 30 millimeters, then a special thin metal-plastic tube with a cross section of 16 millimeters can be used.
In the process of thawing the ice formation, it slowlypushed deep into the system until it completely breaks through the plug. It is important to remember that only a rigid hose can be used on winding sections of the water supply, as the pipe will not work.
Also, experts do not recommend using a watering hose for defrosting: it is distinguished by its softness. It is best to use gas or oxygen hoses in this case. They can be pushed inside the water supply up to fifteen meters, but this will require considerable effort due to their large weight.
An enema or Esmarch's mug
This pipe defrosting machine helps to eliminate ice accumulation when the pipeline is frozen at a great distance from the home, and also if it has many bends and turns. In this case, the craftsmen in their reviews advise using a special strong steel wire, a hydraulic level and a simple enema (Esmarch's mug). All the items described are low cost and easy to buy.
To begin with, the hydraulic level is combined with the wire using a simple electrical tape. The end of the wire is folded into a loop to make it more rigid. It should be wound in such a way that it does not stick out in different directions, and at the end the hydraulic level tube extends beyond the wire limit by a distance of one centimeter. The second end "connects" to Esmarch's cup. After that, the pipe with wire is pushed inside the water pipe until it hits the area with ice.
A device of this type is quite simple and quickly passes through all the bends of the pipe,reaching the required area. After the hydraulic level reaches the right place, heated water is fed into the enema tube over time. A container should be placed under the outlet of the pipe to collect water, into which it will drain. Over time, the ice blockage will melt and the fixture can be moved further.
It should be noted that this method is quite slow. The average speed of work reaches 1 meter per hour, that is, for the whole day of work, only 5-7 meters of pipe can be thawed.
Using electric current
Sometimes it happens that the thickness of the water pipe does not exceed 20 millimeters, its length stretches for 50 meters, and the depth of the run is about 80 centimeters, which is very small, and in areas where excavation is prohibited (for example, on track). In this case, utilities are advised to wait for the onset of spring and thaw - but in this situation this is not an option.
Preparing for defrosting
To defrost plastic pipes, you can use a homemade device. To construct it, you need a plug for an outlet, a two-core copper wire, a compressor and a hose for pumping liquid. For example, you can take a wire for defrosting pipes with a cross section of 2.5-3 mm, an 8 mm car fuel hose and a compressor for a car or a pump.
It should be noted that when working with electric current, it is important to strictly follow the safety rules in order to prevent negative consequences and possible injuries. Only after that it will be possible to proceed to the assembly of the device fordefrosting the plumbing system.
How to carry out the procedure correctly?
On a small piece of wire, the outer insulation is removed, the cores are separated. First, one of the cores is stripped of insulation, and the remaining insulated wire residue is carefully, trying not to deform the sheath, bent in the other direction along the wire. After almost at the bend, the wire is scrolled with 3-5 tight turns of bare wire. Stepping back from the place of 2-3 millimeters, the same actions are performed with the second core. In this case, it is important to ensure that the ends of the two strands do not touch each other.
On the other side of the wire, a plug and a "bulbulator" are fixed. Such a device supplies an electric current directly to the water, which leads to a reaction with the release of a huge amount of heat. The main advantage of this process is that only the liquid is heated, while the wires remain at the same temperature, which prevents accidental burning of polyethylene pipes.
Before turning on the finished device, you should test it. To do this, it is lowered into a container with liquid and current is applied - everything functions correctly if air bubbles are visible in the water and a slight buzz is heard. It is important to pay attention to the fact that it is forbidden to touch the water while the device is operating, otherwise you can earn an electric shock.
The wire is pushed deep into the pipes, making sure that it does not bend before it reaches the ice. Then turn on the device for a few minutes and wait until the process of ice melting begins. After that, you should turn off the current and trypush the wire further. In this way, first one meter of water supply is defrosted.
Next, it is required to remove the thawed liquid from the pipe by means of a compressor in order to reduce the volume of heated water and prevent the pipes from freezing again. If there is a special device, a special faucet can be welded onto the pipe, which can be closed as soon as water flows through the pipe. This will help prevent the area with the ice block from flooding and not pulling the wire out of the pipe.
