Yorkshire Water on Leaks and Frozen Pipes

THE BIG FREEZE currently blighting the whole of the Yorkshire Region has seen a 60% increase in customer calls to Yorkshire Water to report possible leaks and frozen water pipes. The company has been busier than usual on the ground too attending around 68 bursts a day – a 23% increase on the same period last year.

The company is calling for the public to help them in reporting leaks by calling its Free Leakline number 0800 57 35 53.

Yorkshire Water currently has 140 people working on leakage detection - a 15% increase on this time last year - and is recruiting an additional 120 people to focus in this area between January and March 2011. However, the company still rely on people flagging up problems in their area. Tony O'Shea, who is the network optimisation manager at Yorkshire Water, said:

"Our customers played a huge role in flagging up bursts last Winter, enabling our teams to get out quickly to carry out the necessary repairs and we'd once again urge them as our eyes and ears on the ground, to get in touch with us if they spot a leak by calling our freephone Leakline number."

Yorkshire Water have also issued advice on protecting water pipes from the freezing conditions.

Customers are advised to:

• Keep your home heated during a very cold snap - set your timer to constant or 24 hours and use your thermostat to maintain some warmth through the night and whilst you're out. 
• Wrap all pipework, cisterns and tanks in unheated areas like lofts, roofs, outbuildings and garages with insulation, using good quality waterproof foam lagging that meets the requirements of British Standard 6700 and Water Supply Regulation. 
• Get to know your stop taps! The main one is often found under the kitchen sink and you'll need to turn them off quickly if there's a burst. 

For further information and an audio guide on how to protect your pipes this winter, customers can visit the Frost Protection webpage on the Yorkshire Water website.