Author	Thread: Ask anything? Heat Tape?
Loretta7 View Profile History	Ask anything? Heat Tape? Posted : 21 Sep, 2011 05:25 PM Anyone have any advice about putting heat tape on pipes? Post Reply
bryan1608 View Profile History	Ask anything? Heat Tape? Posted : 21 Sep, 2011 06:05 PM is this a basement or crawl space, little more description might need electric heat tape wrapping might be enough Post Reply
View Profile History	Ask anything? Heat Tape? Posted : 21 Sep, 2011 06:13 PM When it comes to taping pipes or wires, use ONLY enough to cover it. That's all I got. Plumbing (this is plumbing we're talking about right?) was by far my worst subject in shop class. Post Reply
Loretta7 View Profile History	Ask anything? Heat Tape? Posted : 21 Sep, 2011 07:22 PM OK, here's more information, thanks! Very old cabin/house in the mountains. Only one area that's hard to keep from freezing during deep freezes. The house used to have the hot water heater in an outisde closet attached to the house when it was just a summer cabin. They moved the water heater inside in the 40's but the pipes to the tub still run through the closet and then back into the house (bathroom tube). I used to have heat tape in there years ago, but once the pipes froze and busted. I do not know if the tape wore out or what. One of the people I had looked at it said the tape had caught on fire and said I should just use a slate heater in there instead. The closet is just about 2' x 2' wide and I've always been concerned about the heater in there not to mention the cost. I am going back to heat tape and plan on just putting it on myself, though have never done it. I am at 8,000 feet in the Rockies and have seen it 20 below (without wind chill) many times. I find that people can't understand how that effects pipes sometimes, so please know it's very cold. The pipes were laid and the house built without a crawl space under that part of the house so floors need to be torn up if they break under the house. Any advice or things to consider (other than selling the house) are appricated! Thanks. Post Reply
bryan1608 View Profile History	Ask anything? Heat Tape? Posted : 22 Sep, 2011 05:30 AM when i am trying to figure something out in the kitchen i look it up on e how cut and pasted the following from there 1 Check your pipes to see if they are presently leaking. You do not want to install heat tape over wet pipes. Check the places where your pipes join up especially well for leaks. Repair any leaks before installing the heat tape. 2 Begin by wrapping the heat tape around the pipe in a single layer. Alternatively, run the heat tape along the sire of the pipe. 3 Use electrical tape to hold the heat tape firmly in place. Consult your manufacturer's guidelines for spacing details. 4 Cover the pipe and heat tape with insulation. Insulation will help protect your heat tape from the elements, increasing the life of the tape. Make sure the insulation is waterproof. 5 Plug the heat tape into a Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter. You should find a GFCI near the water inlet on your home. If you do not have a GFCI, you will need to install one. When the temps do dip way way down another tip for added insurance is to leave a faucet dripping slightly when you go to bed Post Reply