ABOVE: Bill Krumholz takes out and inspects the furnace filter during a demonstration at Day Pumbing, Heating and Cooling.

FAIRMONT – Cold spots have come a few times this winter, and the strain this puts on homes and vehicles can create difficult situations.

After snow last week, below-zero temperatures have again reared their ugly head. Heat and water are both commonly affected by the stress intense cold puts on their systems.

For heat, Day Plumbing, Heating, and Cooling Owner Bill Krumholz said they have most often seen no-heat calls where the heat drops to or below 50 degrees in a home.

“Furnace quits operating due to a mechanical malfunction,” he said. “Then we need to diagnose what’s wrong and hopefully we have the parts on hand to fix it. If we don’t, then we order them, and people have temporary heat for a day or two.”

Even when temperatures get down to 30 to 40 degrees, Krumholz said furnace problems can still hide.

“The colder it is, the more they run,” he said. “You can have a furnace not operating properly, and you won’t know if it’s 30 to 40 degrees out. When it gets down to zero or below, all of a sudden the problem the furnace has been having comes to light because of the falling temperature.”

With yearly fall maintenance and regular monitoring of the furnace filter, Krumholz said it is easier to prevent or earlier identify problems. While it depends on the furnace, Krumholz said generally after 15 years replacement should be considered over continued repairs.

One thing some may not think of with furnaces is humidifiers. Krumholz said people should avoid using tap water for humidifiers, as the water’s minerals enter the home’s air and plug up a furnace filter much faster.

Last year was relatively quiet in terms of freezing temperatures and snow occurrences. Using his tried and true metric, Krumholz said it has been much busier this winter.

“I gauge the severity of the winter by how much I have to go out and do calls,” he said. “Our guys all keep very busy. When we get overwhelmed, then I get tapped to go out and fix things. I have gone out a lot this year.”

With water, frozen pipes are especially a concern when temps are this far below freezing. Most susceptible are pipes leading to trailer park homes, of which Krumholz said a dozen have frozen this winter.

“They have an exposed water line from hydrant coming out of the ground, traveling up to the belly of the trailer,” Krumholz said. “Those lines can be two, three feet long, or they can be 15 to 25 feet long. The entire length of that pipe is exposed to the elements.”

To prevent this, heat tape and insulation are wrapped around the pipes. Where issues arise are when animals chew through the material and expose the pipes, or the heat tape fails.

“Then the pipe freezes and they need to be taken out and brought back to the shop here,” Krumholz said. “Typically we thaw them out, re-heat tape, re-wrap and then re-install.”

When people are home, unless there is an insulation or foundational crack, Krumholz said he doesn’t see many pipe issues in homes. It’s when people go away that issues can arise.

“The number one thing we see is people go away for days and don’t have someone watching their house,” he said. “Then their heat goes out. At that point, you can have frozen pipes.”

If you do have to leave, Krumholz said there are some simple steps you need to follow.

“If they have a gas water heater turn it to vacation setting,” he said. “Turn the water off at the meter, and don’t set the heat any lower than 60 degrees. Have somebody watch it when it’s colder than zero degrees outside. Have them come in every couple of days and verify the heat is working.”

Several issues can happen with vehicles as well. With batteries, D&R Repair owner Duane Tenney said battery cables should be clean and batteries tested for cranking amp levels. As for age, Tenney said batteries can be all over the place.

“I’ve replaced them at a year and a half and 10 years,” he said. “Consider replacing at 3 or 4 years.”

Tenney said vehicle checkups should happen once a year, and if a warning light comes on they should come in immediately.

“A check engine light could be for any number of things,” he said. “If you don’t check it because your car’s running fine now, it could leave you stranded later.”

Tires are also uniquely susceptible to shifts in temperature. The colder it gets, the more air condenses and tires lose pressure. For safe driving, Tenney recommends having a tire tread of at least 2/32nds, with 4/32nds being ideal. A survival kit should always be present in a vehicle in case of a breakdown or incident.

For his own vehicles, Tenney has a checklist he follows to make sure all systems are running as designed.

“Make sure the antifreeze is good,” he said. “Make sure the battery and tires have been tested. Check the electrical systems. Make sure all the fluids are full.”