This Article Advises How To Prevent A Burst Water Pipe Flood.  Al’s Plumbing, Heating & A/C in Plano, Texas provides maintenance & repairs for all brands of Central A/C, Gas & Electric Furnace, and Heat Pumps.   Additionally, we sell and install new HVAC Systems from American Standard (same company as Trane), Ameristar (same company as American Standard) and Coleman HVAC (same company as York HVAC).

Al’s also provides full-service plumbing maintenance, repairs and replacements for every plumbing component in your home.  Al’s sells and installs Rheem Professional Series gas & electric water heaters, and tankless water heaters.  Al’s is near your home in Plano, TX; Allen, TX; and Frisco, TX.  We service all homes in southern Collin and Denton Counties with no additional travel charge.

Call Al’s today to discuss any concerns or problems you have with your HVAC System or Plumbing.  We’ll arrange an appointment at your convenience.

How To Prevent A Frozen And Burst Water Pipe Flood

What Happened In Texas During February 2021

Image Source: Pixabay

DFW’s record cold in February 2021 created havoc for many homeowners due to frozen & burst water pipes.   Add record cold temperatures and a catastrophic Power-Grid failure — and many homeowners knew their water pipes were frozen before the pipes thawed out.

Texas Power Grid Failures In Recent History

• In 1989 cold weather caused many Texas electricity generators to fail. *4

• During the 2011 Winter-Storm — Many of the same generators that failed in 1989 — failed again.  Rolling blackouts and cascading failures in Texas’ Power Grid swept the state.

• In August 2011, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the North American Electric Reliability Corp. wrote a 357-page report about Texas’ February 2011 outage.  The report found that in 2011: “Power plants did not anticipate the impact of the extended cold weather and high winds.”  The report said, that after the 1989 failures — the Public Utility Commission (PUC) of Texas issued a number of recommendations aimed at improving the winterization of the generators.  However, the recommendations were not mandatory — and over time the recommendations’ implementation lapsed.   The report also said: “More thorough preparation for cold weather could have prevented many of the weather-related outages.”  *4

• In January 2014, power plants buckled due to frigid temperatures.  Generators failed more than a dozen times in 12 hours — bringing Texas’ power grid to the brink of collapse — again.

• In May 2014, the PUC sought changes requiring energy companies to identify and address all potential failure points — including “weather design limits.”
• By the end of the process, the PUC agreed to soften change proposals to Power Generating Companies only needed to address previously known cold-weather power generating limitations.

Fast Forward To The Winter Storm In February 2021 — And Nothing Had Changed But The Date…

Image Source: Pixabay

• On Sunday 02/14/2021: Temperatures dropped to record cold for several days.
• About 2/3 of Texas homes have Electric Heating.

• On Monday 02/15/2021 — Texas power plants were once again unprepared for extreme cold.
• About 46,000 megawatts of electricity generation went offline (enough to power 9 million Texas homes during a peak-demand, hot summer day).
• This left millions of homes without electricity — and freezing water pipes.
• At its peak — 4+ million Texans had no electricity.

Monday 02/15/2021 Timeline:

• Electricity Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT)
• Power plants across Teas were going offline because of the extreme cold weather.  Natural Gas, Coal, Nuclear & Wind-Energy sources were all failing.  Equipment and gas pipelines were freezing up.
• At 12:15 a.m. ERCOT went to Emergency Electricity Alert – Level 1    (ERCOT is the Energy Reliability Council of Texas).
• At 1:07 a.m., ERCOT went to Level 2.  This triggered some power reductions for industrial customers that volunteer to have power turned off when the electricity supply becomes scarce.
• At 1:23 a.m., ERCOT went to Level 3 (the highest Alert Level).
• In response — ERCOT ordered electricity distributors to begin Rolling Blackouts.

Note: ONCOR is DFW’s electricity distributor.

• At 1:51 a.m — Texas. Power Grid frequency dropped below 59.4 hertz.
• If the frequency stays under 60 Hz for 9 minutes or longer — it will trigger a cascading-failure of the power grid.

• 4 minutes & 23 seconds (after the Electricity Frequency dropped below 59.4 hertz) — The Frequency Began Rising as customers were removed from the power grid through Rolling Blackouts.
• If the Electricity Frequency had stayed below 60 hertz for another 4 minutes & 37 seconds longer  — it would have triggered a Cascading-Failure of the grid.
• ERCOT officials said: “The lights might still be out in Texas.”

On Tuesday 02/16/2021 ERCOT said:

• A record low temperature (for the day of Feb 16) of -2F was recorded at DFW Airport.
• 16 gigawatts of renewable energy generation (mostly wind) were offline.  This was due to ice on the wind-turbines that generate electricity.
• 30 gigawatts were offline from thermal sources; gas, coal, and nuclear generation.

On Wednesday 02/17/2021 ERCOT said:

• 18 gigawatts of renewable energy generation (mostly wind) were now offline.
• 28 gigawatts were now offline from thermal sources; gas, coal, and nuclear generation.
• ERCOT had projected that 80% of Texas’s winter electricity generating capacity (67 gigawatts) — would be generated by natural gas, coal, and nuclear.

• Why Did This Happen Again?  For the same reason as all the other times. Amy Nordrum of The MIT Technology Review explained: “A Lack Of Winterized Electricity Generating Infrastructure.”
• These events exposed weaknesses in a Power Grid that was designed when weather’s seasonal shifts were more consistent and predictable — conditions that most experts believe no longer exist. *3
• PLUS “Texas operates its power grid as an island,” noted Rice University’s Cohan.
• Texas is not interconnected to the East or West U.S. Power Grids — so Texas can’t (import/export) electricity (from/to) other states when it’s needed most. *5

Click Here To Learn More About Texas’ Independent Power Grid: New Your Times Texas Electricity And Blackouts

Why Power Grids MUST Have A Balance Between Electricity Supply & Demand

• If the unbalance between electricity supply and demand isn’t corrected quickly — the Electricity Frequency drops.
• Electrical Frequency Defined: U.S. electricity is Alternating Current (AC).  Frequency is how fast the electricity is alternating between positive and negative voltage.
• The Power Grid must have a constant frequency of around 60 hertz.
• Restoring the balance between electricity demand and supply prevents power plants from going offline.

• If the Electricity Frequency drops below 60 hertz for 9 minutes or longer — physical damage to electricity generating and transmission equipment can occur.
• In order to protect from damage — Power Plants begin to go offline, one after another (hence the term “cascading failure”) until possibly the entire power grid has failed and caused a complete (power) blackout.
• If there’s too little electricity supply —  “Automatic Load Shedding” (rolling blackouts) is activated — to avoid a “Cascading Grid Failure”.

Now, Add What’s Going On Behind The Scenes

Texas Population Growth

Plus The Growing Percentage Of Texas Homes With Electric Heating. 

• In 1950, under 1% of Texas homes had electric heat.   
• Texas population = 7.7 million.

• In 1970 —  8% had electric heat.
• Texas population = 11.2 million.

• In 1990 — 40% had electric heat. 
• Texas population = 17.1 million.

• In 2018 — 61% of Texas homes had electric heat.
• Texas population = 28.6 million.

• Since 2010 — 62% of new homes built in Texas have electric heating. *1

• In 2021 — Texas population = 29.8 million.

*1 Source: https://energyathaas.wordpress.com/2021/02/22/the-texas-power-crisis-new-home-construction-and-electric-heating/#:~:text=Electric%20heating%20in%20Texas%20has,in%20Texas%20use%20electric%20heating.

** Source: https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/energy-environment/2021/02/24/392290/texas-power-grid-was-4-minutes-and-37-seconds-away-from-collapsing-heres-how-it-happened/

*3 Source:https://apnews.com/article/why-texas-power-grid-failed-2eaa659d2ac29ff87eb9220875f23b34

*4 Source: https://www.statesman.com/story/news/politics/politifact/2021/02/22/texas-power-outage-ercot-grid-beto-orourke/4540833001/

*5 Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/17/how-the-texas-power-grid-failed-and-what-could-stop-it-from-happening-again.html

So, The Question Isn’t: “Will Texas’ Power Grid Fail Again During Extreme Cold?”

Rather The Question Is: “When Will Texas’ Power Grid Fail Again During Extreme Cold?”

These Three Articles Provide Additional, In-Depth Information:

1. Click Here For Our Article: How To Help Prevent Water Pipes From Freezing:  AlsPlumbing.com Help Prevent Frozen Water Pipes

2. Click Here For Our Article: How To Help Prevent Outdoor Faucets From Freezing.  AlsPlumbing.com Help Prevent Frozen Outdoor Faucets.

3. Click Here For Our Article: Temporary Water Pipe Repair: AlsPlumbing.com Temporary Water Pipe Repair

How To Prevent Home Flooding Due To Frozen & Burst Water Pipes

DFW Homeowners Must Know How To Shut The Water To The House OFF.

Take Action The Moment You Discover A Frozen Water Pipe (no water coming out a faucet).

• Know Where Your Home’s Main Water Shut-Off  Valve Is Located.   For DFW Homes it’s usually within 18″ from the house — at the location where the water line in the lawn connects to the house.

• The Main Water Shut-Off is inside a plastic box buried even with the ground.  The box has a removable lid.

NOTE: In The Northern U.S. — the Main Water Shut-Off Valve Is Likely Near The Water Heater In A Slab Foundation Home.  With a basement, the shut-off is there (likely near the water heater).

Know How To Turn The Main Water Shut-Off Valve OFF.  The valve may have a handle — or you may need an adjustable wrench to turn it off.

• If the water to the house is turned off — a burst water pipe can’t cause water damage to the home.

• With the main water valve shut off — place an electric heater about 18″ from the frozen pipe.  If you are unsure where the pipe is, skip this step.

This YouTube Video Shows What A DFW Home’s Main Water Shut-Off Valve Looks Like

— And How To Turn It Off —

Image Souce: YouTube Embedded Video Link

To View The Video — Click On The White Arrow In The Center Of The Image

Once The Water To The House Is Turned Off:

• Open every water faucet in the house.  When water freezes, it expands by 10%.  The pressure build-up inside a water pipe (from the expansion) can cause it to burst.
• If the faucets are open — there is somewhere for the water (inside the pipes) to go if a freeze occurs.
• This can’t guarantee no pipe will burst.
• BUT, with the water turned off to the house — when a burst water pipe thaws — no flooding can occur.

Once The Outdoor Temp Is Above 20 Degrees For At Least 6 Hours: 

It’s now ok to turn the water to the house back on.  How to check if there’s a burst pipe.

• Shut off all faucets.

• Open the main shut-off valve 1/4 of the way.

• Look At The Water Meter Dial:

• If the; Triangle, Arrow or Star STARTS MOVING (and all faucets are shut off) — YOU HAVE A BURST WATER PIPE. 

• IMMEDIATELY TURN THE WATER BACK OFF TO PREVENT A BURST WATER PIPE FLOOD. 

• Call a plumber to locate and repair the burst pipe.

• Once the pipe is repaired, it’s safe to turn the water back on.

Image Source: ShutterStock

SHOWN: Water Meter Dial With A Black “Star” & Red “Arrow”

Note: The Triangle, Arrow, or Star is typically either black or red.

Selling? Texas Requires You To Disclose If Your Home Has Flooded

Question #7  On A SELLER’S DISCLOSURE NOTICE  — As Approved By The Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC)

“7. Have you (Seller) ever filed a claim for flood damage to the property with any insurance provider, including the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)?”

This Article Advised How To Prevent A Burst Water Pipe Flood.  Al’s Plumbing, Heating & A/C in Plano, Texas provides maintenance & repairs for all brands of Central A/C, Gas & Electric Furnace, and Heat Pumps.    Additionally, we sell and install new HVAC Systems from American Standard (same company as Trane), Ameristar (same company as American Standard) and Coleman HVAC (same company as York HVAC).

Al’s also provides full-service plumbing maintenance, repairs and replacements for every plumbing component in your home.  Al’s sells and installs Rheem Professional Series gas & electric water heaters, and tankless water heaters.  Al’s is near your home in Plano, TX; Allen, TX; and Frisco, TX.  We service all homes in southern Collin and Denton Counties with no additional travel charge.

Call Al’s today to discuss any concerns or problems you have with your HVAC System or Plumbing.  We’ll arrange an appointment at your convenience.