Drip or Drain? Essential Tips to Protect Your Lakehouse in Winter

Winter Storm Prep for East Texas Lake Houses: Drip or Drain?

It’s hard to believe we’re already thinking about winter storms when it’s still 80 degrees outside, but as the saying goes, “Winter is coming.” … and you need to be prepared. One of the biggest debates surrounding what to do when a winter storm hits East Texas is: do I leave my faucets dripping or do I turn off my water and fully drain my lakehouse?

Most of us remember our parents wrapping exterior spigots with towels and duct tape and having to drip faucets overnight when there was a brutal freeze. Most of us have memories of hair drying a frozen pipe in the winter when we forgot to drip a faucet overnight. So, we should just leave our lakehouses dripping when we leave for the winter, right? WRONG! Prep My Lakehouse recommends draining your home when we see a winter storm. Why, what’s the big deal?

The major difference with lakehouses and winter storms in East Texas is three-fold:

• Typically, you’re not at the lakehouse when there’s a freeze
• Many lake homes are on a septic system versus city water and sewage systems
• The power grid is less consistent than in major metros or larger population areas

When Winter Storms Hit, You Won’t Be at the Lake

Storms never hit at a convenient time, and most of our clients are unable to be at the lake to prepare their houses for the storm. That means the house temperatures may be too low (or still on AC instead of heat), cabinets aren’t open to let warm air circulate, and faucets haven’t been set to drip… OR the house hasn’t been drained. So that poses the first challenge. If you haven’t thought ahead, your house isn’t ready.

Secondly, if you were able to get ahead of a storm and your faucets dripped before you left, you’re not at the lakehouse to make sure things are okay. Is the water still dripping? Is the heat still working? Do we still have power? There are just too many unknowns that you aren’t on site to see and keep an eye on.

Septic Versus City Water and Sewage

We get spoiled “in the city” and don’t even think about flushing a commode or dripping faucets during the winter – much less if the power goes out. For most lakehouses, that is a very different reality. Most homes on the lake and in rural areas are not on city water and sewage. Depending on your location, you may be on a water district such as East Cedar Creek Fresh Water Supply District, West Cedar Creek Municipal Utility District, an others… or you may have a well providing your fresh water for drinking.

Where things get complicated is with your wastewater, or rather, what happens to the water that goes down the drain or is flushed down your commode? Most lake homes are on a septic system with a float, grinder, and lift pump to send your wastewater to an OSSF – On-Site Sewage Facility. Some homes in very rural areas with no OSFF may have an aerobic system or traditional septic with leach field. However, most lake homes do not have traditional septic systems as this type of system as the leach field is typically too close to the lake which would contaminate the lake water.

So what is a float and grinder pump, and why do I need to know?

In your septic tank (typically located a few feet from the exterior of your home with a large top) there is a float, attached to a grinder pump. The float, as the same suggests, floats. When the water level in your septic tank from the waste water that goes down your drains and is flushed from your commodes reaches a certain level in your septic tank, the float actuator will float above a certain level – which is what turns on your grinder pump to process your waste water.

A sewage grinder pump is a type of pump specifically designed to handle wastewater that contains solids and debris. Unlike regular sewage pumps, which may only handle liquids, grinder pumps grind up solid waste into a slurry before pumping it to an OSSF. This grinding process allows the pump to handle materials that would otherwise clog or damage standard pumps.

In layman’s terms:

• Waste water goes into your septic tank from shower, laundry, dishes, and commodes
• When the tank is filled to a certain level, the float will activate and turn on your grinder
• The grinder will grind up anything in your wastewater and pump it to your wastewater treatment facility.

Here’s an example to help you visualize what you may have (or comparable) at your lakehouse.

Remember – all of the activity in this scenario requires ELECTRICITY. No power = no activating the grinder. No power = no grinding of the water and pumping it to the OSSF… which means no removal of the waste water from your septic tank reservoir.

A septic tank with no power to activate the grinder pump means the water can start to back up into the home as it has no where else to go!

Unstable Power Grids Mean Potential Loss of Electricity During Winter Storms

In the last few years, East Texas has seen challenges with consistent electricity during winter storms. This poses several challenges for homeowners when it comes to protecting your home. With no electricity the following things become dangerous:

• The temperature in your home will drop. Without your heaters running, the temperature in your home can drop to dangerously low levels which can cause freezing in dripping pipes
• If electricity is out for prolonged periods of time, there is a chance that with faucets left trickling, your grinder pump cannot activate to empty your septic tank. That means water could back up into your home.
• Depending on the severity of the power outage, there is also a chance that your water system (well or water district) also has no power so with no power there is no water or water pressure to move water to your home.

So, what should you do?

If you understand the topics above, you realize that the safest way to protect your home is to DRAIN your home prior to a winter storm.  Draining your house safely involves the following:

• Cover all exterior spigots, faucets, showers, and water features if possible. Most exterior water items have a drain option to protect pipes from freezing/exploding. Covering/wrapping the fixtures adds an extra precaution
• Heat should be set to at least 70 degrees inside and cabinet doors and home interior doors should be left open to allow for warm air flow around all pipes and throughout the house
• Turning off your water at the main – or via your home’s whole home shut-off valve if you have one installed
• Once the water is off to the home, all water heaters, tankless water heaters, recirculating pumps, ice makers, and any other equipment that actively pulls water should be turned off and drained to prevent motor burnout
• All faucets starting at the lowest level of the house should be turned on and all hot and cold water should be opened until all faucets run dry and left open

With your home fully drained – the risk of a burst pipe or frozen water fixture is almost impossible. You can rest easy that your house is prepared for the worst even with a multi-day extreme storm that includes power being out for many days (which has been common for East Texas these past few years).

Properly winterizing your home takes quite a bit of time and skill, and many lakehouse owners may not have the tools at the lake, the time, or the know-how to do all these things. That is why Prep My Lakehouse offers our Winter Protection Program (WPP). We’ll winterize your house – to your specifications every time we see the potential for dangerous winter weather in East Texas and check on your home after the storm has passed.

You can read our full explanation of our WPP here. 

We know lakehouse ownership comes with its own set of challenges, winter weather being a huge one, and we’re here to help make things easier for you. Reach out with any questions, if you need more information, or to let us know what services you need. We’re here to serve!