Frozen Pipes

12/30/2016 (Permalink)

Frozen Pipe

When temperatures get below 20 degrees you should flush your toilets and run hot water through your pipes every 4 hours. When it’s extremely cold let cold water slowly drip from faucets served by exposed pipes and pipes particularly close to the foundation.

The lines going to your toilets are more susceptible because they have only cold water running through them. The lower the temperature the more crucial it is to flush toilets regularly. If the toilet sounds irregular or makes a crackling sound while filling up the tank or tank and bowl, or is slow to fill, you have a problem. It’s important to remedy it quickly.

Identify the line in the basement. You can often pin point exactly where it’s frozen because it will be colder to the touch.

Set up a space heater and aim it directly at the frozen area of the line for at least an hour, or until tank and bowl fills at the normal rate. With old style heaters, be careful of a potential fire hazard. Give the space heater space. Do not have flammable materials within several feet of the heater and be certain it’s standing or balanced securely.

Check for drafts. You may find a draft that is aimed directly at the line. These lines are often very close to the foundation. You can identify the draft by simply using your hand or a candle.

Cover up the drafty area. This can be a quick fix by adhering plastic or even a towel over the draft, or you could use caulk or spackle from the inside. Just stop that draft from aiming at your pipe. Suring up drafty areas from the outside and inside is ideal, but at least tackle the problem from the inside for now.

If it’s too late and your pipe has burst, shut off the main water supply, crank up the heat and call a plumber. We’re here if you need us for clean up afterward. We’ll clean up all water, leave fans and dehumidifiers behind until it’s thoroughly dry and be sure your water problem doesn’t turn into a mold problem.

Fire Prevention Week

10/13/2016 (Permalink)

October Is Fire Prevention Month

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) holds their Fire Prevention Week activities in October; this year it’s October 9th-15th.

SERVPRO is proud to announce our sponsorship and participation during this time. Our local fire fighters visit children at school and hold open houses. The kids enjoy these visits and learn the basics of fire prevention.

SERVPRO has provided fire safety coloring books and crayons to the communities of North Reading, Wilmington, Winchester and Stoneham. The fire fighters will distribute these gifts during their visits. It’s a fun way to support our local fire fighters and give back to the community.

In winter, we see an increased risk for household fires. Below are four of the top six causes of fires. Notice the presence of danger increases in winter, due to an increase of usage in these categories:

• Candles 
• Cooking 
• Electrical 
• Heating 

In the spirit of fire prevention, we’d like to remind you to:

• Replace smoke detector batteries.
• Replace smoke alarms every 10 years.
• Have an escape plan and meeting place.
• Space heaters need adequate space around them. Don’t place objects to close.
• Thoroughly clean your dryer of lint.
• Never use a candle if an oxygen tank is used in the home.

Here to Help

8/31/2016 (Permalink)

Help

If you’re a home or business owner the day will most likely come when you need help with an emergency. It may be a flood, fire, burst pipe or faulty sprinkler system.

Your first action in many instances should be to call 911. Your towns’ finest (fire, ambulance and police personnel) are trained to help in an emergency; this much we know.

But, what can you do yourself? How can you prepare? September is national preparedness month. Visit https://www.ready.gov/september It’s filled with useful tips, lists of items everyone should have on hand, and so much more.

There’s more that you can do. SERVPRO is serious about helping local home and business owners. We’re so serious that we put our own resource together. It’s a free, very useful phone application that can be found at https://ready.SERVPRO.com/

It holds all your critical contacts (water, fire, electric, insurance and more) in one place. You can locate, photograph and tag things like water and electric shut offs. Home owners and business owners alike can access and use this free tool. It can be a bit more involved for a commercial building so call and we’ll assist you for free.

Fed Up With Foul Smelling Clothes?

8/26/2016 (Permalink)

Fed Up With Foul Smelling Clothes?

Do you store your cool weather clothes away during summer?  If so, this can help!

Clothes with a musty smell can usually be taken care of by using one of these common household products.

• Baking soda


• White vinegar


• Borax

Just fill your washing machine with clothes, hot water and your normal detergent. Once full, pour a cup of your selected product in and agitate to ensure it’s mixed properly. You can use a mixture of vinegar and baking soda, a half cup each.

For best results dry the clothes outside. A sunny breezy day is best. A place that gets both wind and sun is ideal.

Keep in mind, if your clothes smell musty it’s because of mold. Our team at SERVPRO are here to help