In many areas of the country where homes are built on a slab foundation water supply lines are routinely routed through the attic space.
Water pipes freezing in attic.
Because most attics are unconditioned a hard freeze that plunges attic temperatures into the mid 20s for any length of time can cause a burst pipe.
Insulate pipes located in the attic and crawl space using pipe insulation even if the climate where you live does not often have hard freeze conditions.
Otherwise a cold water line run a long distance through a hot attic can take several.
Surprisingly both hot and cold pipes can be at risk.
Insulation will help maintain water temperature levels in the pipes.
Because the reality is if you end up with a burst pipe in your attic due to freezing the amount of water damage is going to be extensive.
Within minutes water will travel throughout your attic down your wall cavities and through your ceiling.
It can potentially flood every floor of your home within a few minutes.
There are number of steps you can can take when learning how to keep pipes from freezing in the first place.
You can also wrap pipes in heat tape or heat cables with a thermostat control.
Because water always flows downward freezing attic pipes that rupture are especially damaging to the living spaces below.
Field tests of residential water systems showed that for uninsulated pipes installed in an unheated attic freezing began when the outside temperature fell to 20 f or below.