Winter Plumbing in Los Gatos: Cold Nights, Holiday Guests, and What to Check Now

Winter in Los Gatos is mild compared to most of the country, and that is exactly why plumbing gets caught off guard. Most homes here were never built with freezing weather in mind, and the season stacks up a few things at once: cold nights in the hills, a water heater working harder than it did all summer, and a house full of holiday guests. None of it is cause for alarm, but a few minutes of checking in November saves a lot of trouble in December.

Cold Nights Are Real in the Hills

The valley floor rarely sees a hard freeze. The hills are a different story. Homes up in the Los Gatos mountains, along the roads toward Saratoga and the ridge, see frost most winters and the occasional night below freezing. Pipes in those homes often run where the cold can reach them.

The spots that freeze first are the ones exposed to open air:

• Hose bibs on north-facing walls or in shaded side yards
• Irrigation backflow devices that sit above ground near the meter
• Pipes in vented crawlspaces, especially near open vents
• Supply lines in garages and along exterior walls with little insulation
• Long runs between the meter and the house, which are common on hillside lots

Foam pipe sleeves from the hardware store cover most exposed runs in an afternoon. Insulated covers for hose bibs and backflow devices are cheap and easy to put on. On the few nights the forecast drops below freezing, disconnecting garden hoses and letting a faucet on an exterior wall drip slowly overnight is simple insurance. Our guide to plumbing in the Los Gatos mountains covers more of what hillside homes need.

If a Pipe Freezes

A faucet that only trickles on a cold morning, or no water at one fixture while the rest of the house is fine, can mean a frozen line. If that happens:

• Leave the faucet open so water can move once it thaws
• Warm the pipe gently with a hair dryer or warm towels, working from the faucet back toward the frozen spot
• Never use an open flame or a heat gun on a pipe
• If you see water spraying or dripping anywhere, shut off the main right away

A pipe can split while frozen and only start leaking once it thaws, so watch the area for an hour or two afterward. It helps to know where your main water shutoff is before you need it.

Your Water Heater Works Harder in Winter

The water coming into your house is noticeably colder in winter, so the water heater has to work harder and takes longer to recover between showers. A heater that kept up fine in August can start running out of hot water in December, especially with guests.

A few things worth checking now:

• Look for water around the base of the tank or rust on the bottom edge
• Check the relief valve pipe on the side of the tank. If it is dripping, the pressure in your system may be running high
• Listen for popping or rumbling while it heats. That is usually sediment, and hard water in our area builds it up faster
• Notice how long the hot water lasts. If it is shorter than it used to be, the tank may need a flush or may be near the end of its life

If the relief valve keeps dripping, our water pressure service can check whether high pressure is the cause. For everything else, see our water heater service, and our post on how long water heaters last in the South Bay.

Holiday Guests and a Full House

More people means more showers back to back, more laundry, more dishes, and more flushing than the house sees the rest of the year. Plumbing that was getting by on a quiet schedule shows its weak spots fast.

• Kitchen sink and disposal. Keep grease, potato peels, bones, pasta and rice out of the drain. Let grease cool and throw it in the trash.
• Guest bathrooms. Run the water and flush the toilet in any bathroom that has been sitting unused. A slow drain or a toilet that runs is easier to fix before company arrives.
• Space out the showers. Giving the water heater fifteen or twenty minutes between showers keeps the last person from getting a cold one.
• Watch for drains acting up together. If the tub gurgles when the toilet flushes, or several drains slow down at once, that points to the main sewer line, not a single clog.

If drains start backing up while the house is full, stop running water and give us a call. Our page on sewer backups and main line clogs explains what to do in the meantime.

A Quick November Checklist

• Cover exposed pipes, hose bibs and backflow devices, especially in the hills
• Disconnect garden hoses before the first cold night
• Find your main shutoff and make sure it turns
• Check the water heater for leaks, rust, and a dripping relief valve
• Run water and flush toilets in rooms that do not get used much
• Deal with any slow drains now, before the rains and the holidays arrive together

Our guide to getting your drains ready before the rains pairs well with this one.

Something not working the way it should? Simply Green Plumbing has served Los Gatos, Saratoga, Monte Sereno and Campbell since 1988. Call us at (408) 358-6446 and our own crew will take care of it.