which faucets to drip
You should drip only the most at-risk faucets, not every tap in the house.
Quick Scoop
- Drip faucets served by pipes on or in:
- Exterior walls.
* Unheated or poorly heated areas (garages, crawl spaces, basements, attics).
* Rooms that feel noticeably colder than the rest of the house (bonus rooms, over-garage rooms, north-facing corners).
- Prioritize:
- The faucet farthest from your water meter or main shutoff , so water has to move through the longest run of pipe.
* At least one hot and one cold line if they run through cold areas (for example, a bathroom on an exterior wall).
- You usually do not need to drip:
- Faucets in well-heated interior rooms with pipes fully inside insulated walls.
Simple rule of thumb
When temps are expected to drop to around 20°F or below for several hours, let a slow drip or tiny trickle run from:
- The farthest faucet from the main shutoff.
- Any sink on an exterior wall or over an unheated space.
That way you protect your pipes without wasting more water than necessary.
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.
