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By Roots Team · Jul 10, 2026 · Updated Jul 20, 2026

How often should you winterize your outdoor faucets?

Quick answer: Once a year, ideally in October. A frozen hose bib bursts the pipe inside the wall. Disconnect hoses and drain before first freeze.

Why it matters

Prevents costly damage

Skipping it eventually leads to water damage or an expensive repair.

Staying on schedule matters beyond the repair bill: a consistent maintenance record is one of the factors in a home's Roots Home Health Score, and well-kept homes typically sell faster and closer to asking price.

How to do it

Water trapped in an outdoor faucet freezes, expands, and splits the pipe inside the wall. The whole job is leaving no water where frost can reach: hoses off, lines drained, covers on.

  1. Disconnect every garden hose, splitter, and timer. Drain them and store them inside.
  2. If there's an interior shutoff valve feeding the faucet (check the basement/crawlspace ceiling near the wall), close it.
  3. Open the outdoor faucet and let the trapped section drain empty; leave it slightly open over winter if you closed an interior valve.
  4. Slip an insulated foam cover over each faucet and snug it against the wall.
  5. Frost-free faucets still get steps 1 and 4. They only survive winter when the hose is off.

Alternatives & optional extras

  • If there's an interior shutoff for the line, closing it and draining the faucet is the real protection. The foam cover is backup.
  • Frost-free faucets still need the hose removed; a connected hose is what causes them to fail.
  • In hard-freeze climates, ask for frost-free bibs at your next plumbing visit.

Time: 20 minutes · Typical cost: $5–$15 per faucet for covers

What you'll need

If you skip it

A split pipe inside the wall, discovered as a soaked wall cavity, warped flooring, or a spring geyser. It's typically thousands of dollars of water damage from skipping twenty minutes of unscrewing hoses. It's one of the most common winter insurance claims in cold climates.

Related systems to keep on schedule

  • Sump pump — start with: test sump pump operation, every 3 months
  • Water softener — start with: check and refill water softener salt, once a month
  • Water filtration system — start with: replace water filtration cartridges, every 6 months
  • Septic system — start with: pump septic tank, every 3 years

The bottom line

“According to Roots' home maintenance model, you should winterize your outdoor faucets once a year, ideally in October. It's one of the essential tasks for any home with a outdoor faucets / hose bibs.” — Roots home maintenance model
Free tool Get your home's full maintenance checklist This is one of dozens of tasks your home needs. Answer three quick questions and get a seasonal checklist tuned to your home. It takes about 30 seconds and there is no signup.
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Frequently asked questions

How often should you winterize your outdoor faucets?
Once a year, ideally in October. A frozen hose bib bursts the pipe inside the wall. Disconnect hoses and drain before first freeze.
Is it really necessary to winterize your outdoor faucets?
Yes. Roots classifies this as an essential task: skipping it eventually leads to water damage, fire risk, a safety hazard, or an expensive failure.
Never think about this schedule again.

Roots builds your home's maintenance plan automatically: every task above, timed to your home, with reminders and a Home Health Score that tracks your progress.

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