TO use a hairdryer to

[barbarianoftheuniverse]

try to thaw v elderly neighbour's frozen water pipes in her garage. She 84, has no water and therefore no heat and I cannot get her round to our house because of the ice inbetween.

Have taken round plug in electric heaters and hot things but she is afraid to turn direct heat on pipes in case they burst (they are a mixture of copper and plastic).

Anyone know?

Put this is AIBU for rapid response team. Unlike local authority who say she is not an emergency and they will ring tomorrow.( For goodness sake).

advice here

and here

and here

You are a lovely neighbour, btw.

Dh asks if the pipes are insulated and if you know if just the pipes from the mains to the garage are frozen or if the pipes through the whole house are?

He also says the amount of heat needed to thaw them would be huge. You would be best off trying to enclose the garage and stick a heater in there to bring the temp up to thaw the pipes. A hair drier wouldn't burst the pipes.

Also he isn't a plumber but spent years in the building industry. Hope this all helps but I'm not sure it does sorry.

The pipes have like old sacking round. I have stuffed scarves and things round the garage door which was open and plugged in a little heater and it is now about 3 degrees in there (it was -7 or -8 when I went round this morning) and -17 on her outside thermometer.

Thank you both. I will go back round with a hairdryer in a few minutes. Don't know where the freeze is pipes go inside garage wall and then across roof to kitchen. Do you think they would freeze at the bottom first? The whole house is very very cold.

Have to go back but will be back to check soon. Thanks again.

might be frozen at the roof part,need to watch when it thaws as then they could be burst and the water will start to flow out of them,but well done for being a caring neighbour.I was helping some of the residents of the sheltered housing near me yesterday and it made me feel so good in myself by how grateful they were,really humbling.

I have no advice but you are a lovely person :)

Can I move in next door to you? You're lovely

An 84 year old lady isn't an emergency?

It's a good job she has a lovely neighbour like you

She now has water- thanks to your help. A hairdryer did it. I hope the pipes haven't burst- the water tank in the attic was also frozen.

Apparently she does not count as an emergency because her pipes, although frozen, had not burst.

Thanks again.

Gosh it's cold.

I have just come in (with frozen toes and hands, so had to take a break) from trying to defrost MY pipes to my washing machine (in my garage) with a hairdryer.

It worked a treat last week, but no such luck this week!!!

how did you figure out which pipe was frozen, just out of interest? I have three likely candidates, have attacked each of them.. starting with the two outside ones as the most likely culprits....

Well done for helping your neighbour. If I was 84, I'd kiss you as this is damned hard!

Just want to say what a lovely neighbour you are well done for sorting it out for her. Hope the weather warms up a bit now and the pipes don't freeze again.

(It's been -8 here, the bloody hamster has tried to hibernate 4 times! Maybe I could thaw her out with a hairdrier )

There was only one pipe, anonymousbird. I started at ceiling level and worked down towards the the main stopcock with hairdryer. Left kitchen tap open so water had somewhere to go (thanks Hecate for those links). It took ages though and I am completely frozen now, so good luck!