What about pipes?

[Sunshine]

For those that shut down their pumps in the winter and their plumbing is on the outside, will the water left in the pipes break the pipe when it freezes? This is the first year I shut the bog down. Now I'm worried about any water left in the PVC lines freezing and breaking.

 

[sissy]

If they are worried the could always get the foam pipe insulation .It just folds over the pipes .Would even say use them in the summer so pipes don't heat up

 

[Mmathis]

I have read where people disconnect their tubings which lets the water drain out and not freeze in the pipe. But that's only good if you are shutting everything down.

 

[JohnHuff]

Flush ya pipes!

 

[sissy]

You can blow the excess water out if your concerned with a shop vac with hose on reverse side of outlet on shop vac .I used to do that on my big fountain back in NJ .Really cleans the hoses out also .

 

[Sunshine]

All the pipes are glued. I'm not sure how much water is left in them. Maybe not enough to worry about. I don't know how much water left in a pipe is enough to do any damage.

 

[sissy]

Should not be enough to expand and cause damage .I use sump pump hose and it is all run inside the pond a foot down in the water and then runs up inside the waterfall to the tank but it really never gets that cold here but if it did it would leak right back into the pond any ways .

 

[addy1]

My pipes are outside of the pond, they all have water left in them when I pull the pump (external) The bog pipe is full of water, no way to drain without draining the bog, it comes out and heads up and over, the out, up and part of the over is full of water. I just leave the ends open, we have dropped to zero without any pipes breaking.

 

[Sunshine]

We get below zero here in the winter. Next year, I was going to put a shut off on the pipe. But, if I do that, It will be full of water to that point of the shut off. Which will be outside the bog. I'm experimenting this year. Shut the bog off, I'm sure the water is below the roots. I'm going to see if they make it or not. I don't have many left since the string algae took over the bog and killed most of them.

 

[addy1]

My pipes do freeze, the shubbie tank was frozen down 10 inches. So I know the pipes froze up solid, they all did fine. But all are open to the air for the ice to expand in the pipe without breaking them, so far lol.

 

[Sunshine]

Well, if the plants make it through this winter, I'll keep doing it this way. If they don't make it, after I get more off you , I'll put a shut off on it so the water stays above the roots and hope the PVC makes it.

 

[DrCase]

Every pipe i put in is sloped to drain out when i want it to be empty
I take off all my valves and replace with rubber caps during the winter , drain valves can freeze from no flow

 

[Tula]

My pipes have a slight slope to them and I shut them off well in advance of frigid temps, so haven't had a problem. I'm just a little south of you in Cincinnati area. Kim