Metro Vancouver cold could mean busy week for plumbers, HVAC techs

With the Lower Mainland seeing temperatures below zero for the better part of a week, it could means local plumbers and HVAC technicians will be busy.

Alex Milani with Milani Plumbing, Heating and Cooling in Vancouver says business usually picks up during a cold snap.

“Phones are ringing off the hook with a lot of heating calls, a lot of frozen pipe calls. Different various issues that come up when it gets really cold out,” he told CityNews.

“Across plumbing and heating call types, I would say we see at least a 30 to 40 per cent increase in emergency callouts. It gets very very busy,” he added.

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In addition to the increase in calls for service, Milani says road conditions often make it harder for technicians to respond to calls.

“We do understand that it’s the holidays, a lot of people have family coming by, a lot of family events happening. So our technicians and even our office staff, they really work tirelessly, even late into the evening,” he said.

Milani says exposed pipes on homes can often freeze, which will then leak or burst when they thaw, causing damage.

“It can definitely be really devastating when that happens. Once it thaws out, you can get leaks, you can get floods, and it’s just a big kind of upheaval for people’s businesses or lives whenever you get some kind of major flooding that happens,” he said.

But what if nobody is around to call about the frozen pipes?

Rise in insurance claims for empty homes, agent says

Karyn Mosley with Reliance Insurance Agencies in Vancouver says after a cold snap, there is usually an up-turn in claims from people who own vacant or unoccupied homes that were flooded during the cold weather.

“I think those ones are really at risk because, obviously, nobody’s there so no one can tell what’s happened,” she said.

“People who have gone away for Christmas holidays, maybe snowbirds, it’s really important that they remember to follow the insurance guidance and warranties with things like this,” she explained.

Mosley recommends keeping the heat on if you’re leaving your house for a period of time, and reading up on your coverage if there was a flood.

To prevent cold-related damage to homes, both Milani and Mosley recommend doing visual inspections of piping. That could include covering up pipes exposed to the outdoors with blankets so they don’t freeze as quickly.

The Lower Mainland will be experiencing frigid temperatures for the next few days, with the mercury not expected to rise above zero until Saturday.