Winter Home Maintenance: Protect Against Cold, Ice, and Burst Pipes

Winter is the season where maintenance mistakes become emergencies: a burst pipe at 2 a.m., an ice dam leaking into the attic, a space heater too close to the curtains. Do this work before the first hard freeze, and you'll spend the season comfortable instead of calling for help.

Want only the tasks that fit your house? Our free winter prep planner asks how you heat, what's outside, and how cold it gets, then builds a checklist you can tick off or print.

Freeze protection: keep pipes from bursting

Water expands about 9% when it freezes, and that expansion splits pipes — the leak usually appears later, when the ice thaws. Most at risk: outdoor hose bibs, supply lines in unheated spaces, and pipes on poorly insulated exterior walls. The American Red Cross guidance is the standard:

• Insulate exposed pipes. Slip foam sleeves over pipes in unheated areas and cover outdoor faucets with insulated faucet covers — cheap insurance against the most common freeze locations.
• Let faucets drip when it's very cold. When temperatures drop well below freezing, let cold water drip from the faucet served by exposed pipes — running water, even at a trickle, helps keep the line from freezing. In extreme cold, our frozen pipes guide covers when to drip every faucet, and our pipe freeze check shows whether tonight's forecast calls for it.
• Open cabinet doors under sinks on exterior walls so warm room air circulates around the plumbing (move cleaners and chemicals out of reach of children and pets first).
• Keep garage doors closed if any water supply lines run through the garage, and keep the thermostat steady day and night during extreme cold — suspending the nighttime setback costs a little heat but prevents a far costlier burst-pipe repair.
• Know where your main water shutoff is. If a pipe bursts, shutting off the water within minutes is the difference between a cleanup and a gut renovation.

A faucet that only trickles when it should flow freely means a frozen pipe: keep it open and warm the section gently with a hair dryer, heating pad, or hot towels. Never use an open flame — it's a fire risk, and rapid, uneven heating can make the pipe burst. If you can't find or reach the frozen section, call a plumber. Our frozen pipes guide covers thawing step by step and what to do if one bursts.

Gear note: pipe insulation sleeves, UL-listed heat tape or heat cable, and insulated faucet covers are inexpensive freeze protection worth buying before the first hard freeze. Heat tape is a known fire source when it is old, overlapped, or buried under the wrong insulation — choose a cable listed by a recognized testing lab such as UL or CSA, thermostatically controlled or self-regulating, install it exactly per its instructions, and replace it once the jacket cracks. Our heat tape guide covers the safety rules and picks.

Ice dams: what they are and how to prevent them

The cause

Ice dams aren't caused by gutters or heavy snow alone — they're caused by heat escaping into the attic. Warm air heats the roof deck, snow on the upper roof melts, and the meltwater refreezes at the colder eaves. The growing ridge traps liquid water behind it, which backs up under the shingles and into the attic and walls.

Safe prevention

The reliable fix is keeping the roof deck near outdoor temperature. The Building America Solution Center (a DOE national-lab program) lists the three steps, in order of importance:

• 1. Air-seal the ceiling plane — the most important step. Seal gaps around wiring, recessed lights, plumbing stacks, flues, chimneys, and attic hatches so warm air can't leak into the attic.
• 2. Insulate the attic thoroughly to the level recommended for your climate zone, so less heat reaches the roof deck.
• 3. Ventilate the roof with soffit intake plus ridge or gable exhaust vents, keeping cold air moving under the deck.

Keep gutters clean before the first snow, and use a non-metallic roof rake from the ground (FEMA advises against metal ones) to pull snow off the lower few feet of roof after heavy storms. A dam that is leaking, large, above the first story, or near the service line calls for a roofing professional; our ice dam guide covers what to do in the meantime.

What NOT to do

• Don't chip or hack at the ice. Axes, hammers, and picks damage shingles and flashing — trading a leak for a bigger leak.
• Don't climb onto an icy roof. The fall risk is severe; roof rakes exist so you can work from the ground.
• Don't put rock salt or other ice melters on the roof — chemicals can damage shingles and gutters, and they treat the symptom, not the heat-loss cause: if dams recur every winter, the attic needs air-sealing and insulation, and an energy audit is money well spent.

Space heater safety

Heating equipment is the second-leading cause of U.S. home fires, and space heaters are involved in a disproportionate share: a large portion of home heating fires and the large majority of heating fire deaths, per the NFPA, with more than half of those deaths starting with equipment placed too close to things that can burn:

• Turn it off and unplug it when you leave the room or go to sleep. Unattended heaters start most of these fires.
• Plug it directly into the wall outlet — never an extension cord or power strip, which can overheat under a heater's sustained load. One heat-producing appliance per outlet, and one heater per circuit; if the breaker trips, see breaker keeps tripping.
• Buy one with safety features: tip-over shutoff and overheat protection from a recognized testing laboratory. Our space heater guide compares models that have both.
• Never use an oven or stovetop to heat your home — it's a fire and carbon monoxide hazard.

Generator safety: carbon monoxide kills

Winter storms knock out power, and portable generators are the most dangerous thing most homeowners will ever operate. Carbon monoxide is colorless and odorless, can kill within minutes, and victims often lose consciousness before recognizing symptoms — the CPSC says more than 100 people in the U.S. die each year from carbon monoxide linked to portable generators. Every rule here is from the CPSC:

• Never backfeed: don't plug the generator into a wall outlet to power house wiring — it can electrocute utility workers and bypasses your home's circuit protection. Connect appliances directly to the generator's outlets, or have an electrician install a proper transfer switch.
• Follow the manual on wet weather — many manufacturers allow only a noncombustible generator tent rated for the purpose, or advise waiting until rain or snow passes.
• Refuel safely: turn the generator off and let it cool before refueling; store fuel outside living areas in labeled, non-glass safety containers.
• If you feel dizzy, weak, or nauseous near a running generator, get to fresh air immediately.

Shopping for one? Our guide to the best generators for home backup covers sizing, models that shut themselves off when carbon monoxide builds up, and the battery power stations that are safe to run indoors.

Carbon monoxide alarms

Generators, furnaces, fireplaces, and gas appliances all make CO alarms essential winter equipment. Install battery-operated CO alarms (or plug-in models with battery backup, so they keep working through the outage that brings out the generator), test them at least once a month, and replace batteries and aging units on schedule. If an alarm sounds, get everyone — including pets — outside to fresh air immediately and call emergency services. Don't go back in to "check." Our CO alarm guide covers what to do next, and what to do when the power goes out covers the rest of an outage.

Thermostat settings when you're away

Heading out for the holidays? Never turn the heat off completely in winter — keep it at no lower than 55°F, the minimum the Red Cross and major insurers (including Travelers) recommend to keep pipes from freezing. Insurers can deny burst-pipe claims when the heat was left off, treating it as preventable neglect. For longer trips, shut off the main water, drain the lines, and disconnect hoses — plus a smart thermostat with low-temperature alerts and a leak detector near the water heater.

Winter items from an inspection report. See chimney crown cracks, missing kickout flashing, and a bathroom fan venting into the attic.

More for cold weather. See a furnace vent blocked by snow, what indoor humidity should be in winter, how to reset a furnace safely, when to use heat pump emergency heat, no water from a frozen well, a snow blower that won't start, snow and ice on the gas meter, frost in the attic, and tankless water heater freeze protection.

More for cold weather. See leaving the house empty in winter, how to find drafts in your house, and a frozen drain pipe.

Frequently Asked Questions

When should I let faucets drip?

When temperatures drop well below freezing and pipes run through unheated spaces — exterior walls, crawl spaces, garages, or under sinks on an outside wall. A trickle of cold water from the faucet farthest from where water enters the house relieves pressure so a frozen section is less likely to burst. Open the cabinet doors under those sinks so warm air reaches the pipes.

What temperature should I keep the house at when I am away in winter?

No lower than 55°F, per the Red Cross, so the pipes inside walls and crawl spaces stay above freezing. If you will be gone for weeks in a cold climate, shut off the main water valve and drain the lines as well — our shutoff guide shows where the valve is.

Is it safe to leave a space heater on overnight?

No. Turn it off and unplug it when you sleep or leave the room, keep it three feet from anything that can burn, plug it straight into a wall outlet (never a power strip or extension cord), and choose a model with tip-over and overheat shutoffs. NFPA data puts space heaters behind the large majority of home heating-fire deaths.

Can I run a generator in the garage if the door is open?

Never. Carbon monoxide builds up in minutes, even with the door open. Run a generator outdoors at least 20 feet from the house with the exhaust pointed away from windows and doors, and have battery-operated CO alarms inside. See our smoke and CO alarm guide.

Bottom line

Winter rewards preparation and punishes improvisation: insulate the vulnerable pipes, drip exposed faucets when it's brutally cold, keep the roof deck cold to starve ice dams, give space heaters 3 feet and a wall outlet of their own, and turn them off and unplug them when you leave or sleep, and run generators outdoors at least 20 feet from the house — no exceptions. When the thaw comes, pick up the spring checklist, or follow the full year on our month-by-month maintenance calendar.

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