Maintenance Monday: Winter Heating

    Winter is coming! If you’re new to Rexburg, you can expect the snow to start falling in late October or early November. As a local, I can’t recall a time I wasn’t celebrating Thanksgiving with a bit of snow on the ground. With the cold, there also comes holidays, and with holidays comes trips. When you’re paying for your gas bill for the majority of the year, it is very tempting to turn off your heat for the few days you’re out of town to save a few dollars. Let’s look at why this is a bad idea:

    Each apartment in Mesa Falls has a fire prevention system. The sprinklers in your ceiling have an intricate pipe system behind them. Your smoke alarm goes off whenever it detects smoke, and your sprinkler system goes off whenever there is an actual fire. There is 80 gallons of water per minute that comes out of each sprinkler. If those pipes freeze, they will burst causing the sprinklers to go off.  Your apartment would flood, and if you’re in a second or third floor apartment, an entire waterfall would appear right on your balcony, and you would be coming home to thousands of dollars in damages. 

    What can we do to avoid flooding our apartment?

 In the winter, the only thing keeping your pipes from freezing is the heating system. Keeping your thermostat above 65 degrees Fahrenheit will keep the pipes warm enough to avoid freezing. Of course, when it is -10 degrees outside, you’re not likely to keep your apartment any colder than 70, so if you do make plans to leave for a few days during the winter, make sure to set your thermostat at 65 or higher. Paying a few dollars to the gas company is a small fee compared to paying for the flooding damages. 

    If you have any questions or concerns, please call the office at (208)359-0000. We are here to help you!