How to blow out water lines and winterize an empty house
Winterizing an empty house requires finding the right fitting to blow out the water lines and figuring out unlabeled valves so pipes do not freeze. Without clear diagrams or proper connections, draining down systems like sprinklers becomes a guessing game that risks costly damage during freezing weather.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Turning off one of the meter valves to shut off the entire house
- 2Having the city shut off the water at the street
- 3Using a compressor to blow out water from the sprinkler system and filling with antifreeze
- 4Attaching a small hose to drain the system to a floor drain
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“The problem is I'm having a hard time figuring out the diagram between which valve is A and which is B. They're not labeled and with it getting colder I don't want to leave it and have the pipes freeze.”source ↗
“I'm trying to drain down and turn off the sprinkler system to be more accurate”source ↗
“Just curious if anyone has any suggestions on the installation of a fitting that works best for blowing out the water lines when leaving the house empty for three months in the winter time???”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 10Why do freezeless outdoor faucets still freeze and burst?
- 4How to clean an empty house quickly before moving in
- 9How to fix laminate floor damage before moving out without losing deposit
- 2How to temporarily waterproof a shower wall missing tiles
- 5Do I need to do anything before leaving my car parked for months?
- 3How to maintain an outdoor sump pump discharge pipe in the yard