We get the same call every January. Pipe burst overnight, water all over the side yard, backflow preventer split clean down the middle. The repair bill: usually $300 to $600. The thing is, most of these are preventable in about 5 minutes of work the week before a freeze.
Here's what we tell every homeowner who calls us in November or December.
Step 1: Wrap the Backflow Preventer
This is the single most important thing you can do. The backflow preventer sits above ground, usually on the side of the house, and it has zero protection from a hard freeze. Wrap it with insulation pipe wrap (any hardware store, $8) and tape it tight. If you want extra credit, slip a foam cover over the whole thing.
If you do nothing else on this list — do this one.
Step 2: Drain the Backflow
Most backflow preventers have small bleeder valves on the side. Open them with a flathead screwdriver. Water trickles out. That's the water you don't want freezing inside.
Leave them open until spring.
Step 3: Shut Down the Controller
Flip the controller to OFF or RAIN mode. You don't want it accidentally running a zone in 25-degree weather. (We've seen people forget this and create geysers.)
If you have a smart controller, most have a winter mode in the app. One tap.
Step 4: Check Your Valve Boxes
Walk the yard, find your valve boxes (the green or black plastic lids), and make sure the lids sit flush. Cracked or missing lids let cold air get straight to the valves. Replace any broken ones.
Step 5: Know When to Call
If you're in DFW or Houston Metro and you'd rather have us blow out the system properly with a compressor — we do that. Most jobs run $75 to $120 and take less than 30 minutes per system. We schedule winterizations through November and December.
The rule of thumb we use: if the forecast shows two consecutive nights below 28°F, anyone who hasn't winterized is rolling the dice. Most years they win. The year they don't, the repair costs more than 5 winterizations would have.
Quick prep, quick call, no surprises in March. That's the whole pitch.