Korean Job Discussion Forums

bassexpander · Joined: 13 Sep 2007 Location: Someplace you'd rather be.

Just a note for some of you guys... it's cold today, if you haven't noticed. Be sure to keep your faucets dripping, or flowing in a very small line, to keep the pipes from freezing. This is mainly an issue with older homes.

eamo · Joined: 08 Mar 2003 Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.

Yeah. I've been through this so I know.

Try to keep your pipes warm on extremely cold days. Run the hot water full now and then to heat up the system. As Bass says, leave it dripping when you go out.

Much better than no heating or hot and cold water for three days. Followed by a succession of workmen who didn't seem to know what they were doing for three days more....

I was washing myself at the sinks in the hagwon for a week. That ain't good I tell ya.....

sojourner1 · Posted: Fri Dec 05, 2008 8:12 pm Post subject:

I don't understand why the hot water heaters are placed in cold unheated places like rooftops and unheated back porches. The backporch is enclosed, but is all drafty huge windows except the brick house exterior wall side. This means pipes are exposed as well as the boiler having to work harder in a freezing cold place or you don't get as much heat out of it.

My washing machine is in said cold place too and it's froze up, but it runs on a rubbery plastic tube hooked to a tap coming out the house exterior wall like a garden hose so it's not burst. If I unhook it and trickle it, then the floor will get icy and the drain may back up as ice builds in it. I just hope the metal tap don't break, but it's coming out the house itself which is heated.

Do Koreans have a great deal of problems with freezing pipes or are are things usually OK? I don't know as it's totally a different design than I've ever seen. It took me a while to understand how the boiler works and how to control it, but it's working.

bassexpander · Joined: 13 Sep 2007 Location: Someplace you'd rather be.

And unhook any outside hoses!