Are you traveling for the holidays? As you prepare for your holiday trip, don't overlook the need to keep your apartment home in good working condition while you're gone. One way to do so? Making sure that you've winterized your pipes.

Here are a few tips for keeping your apartment's plumbing system in good working order while you're traveling:

Keep Your Heat On
It may be tempting to turn off your heat altogether while you're gone, but in cold weather areas it's best to leave your heat running at a low temperature to prevent pipes from freezing. A post on bobvila.com recommends leaving the temperature set to at least 55 degrees, and suggests that you set it higher if the forecast calls for extreme cold.

Let Faucets Drip
Letting a faucet run at a steady drip is a popular way to keep pipes from freezing during periods of cold weather. One suggestion from Angie's List is to let faucets drip if they run along exterior walls to prevent pressure from building up in a freeze.

Open Cabinets
Likewise, it's worthwhile to open cabinet doors housing plumbing. Opening the cabinets will allow heat to circulate around the pipes more easily.

Everything You Need to Know About Winterizing Pipes [bobvila.com]
5 Tips for Winterizing Plumbing and Pipes [angieslist.com]

Remember that when you have your residents fill out their maintenance requests, make sure to ask whether or not they have pets inside the unit. Not only will this help your maintenance tech be more aware of skittish cats, but you just may uncover an illegal puppy or two.

To enter the Sweepstakes, Like our Facebook Page and then look for the Sweepstakes tab (image shown below) located on our Facebook Page to enter. Sweepstakes ends December 31, 2014.

For mobile users ONLY, like our Facebook Page, and then click here to enter!