Whether you’re between tenants, waiting to close on a home sale, wintering somewhere warmer, or settling an inherited property, an empty house in the winter is a house at risk. No one is around to notice a dripping faucet, a failing furnace, or a pipe that’s starting to freeze until the damage is already done.
At Eco Plumbers, Electricians, and HVAC Technicians, we field emergency calls every winter from homeowners who discover a flooded basement in a house nobody had checked on in weeks. We’ve seen firsthand what separates a home that sails through winter from one that ends up needing a repiping job in February.
This guide walks you through exactly how to winterize an unoccupied home step by step, so you can leave it for weeks or months with confidence that it will still be standing and dry when you get back.
Why Unoccupied Homes Are More Vulnerable to Winter Damage
An occupied home protects itself in small ways you rarely think about. Someone notices the furnace clicking off and on strangely. Someone runs the water often enough to keep it moving through the pipes. Someone smells a gas leak or hears a dripping sound behind a wall.
Take the people out of the equation, and a home loses its early-warning system right when the freeze-thaw cycles are hardest on it. Ohio and Kentucky winters regularly swing from single digits to the 40s and back within a week, and that repeated freezing and thawing is exactly what stresses pipes, seals, and foundations the most. A pipe can freeze, crack, and thaw again without anyone knowing until the next freeze finishes the job and water starts pouring into the walls.
Set the Right Thermostat Temperature for an Unoccupied Home
The single most important thing you can do for an unoccupied home in the winter months is to keep the heat running, not turn it off to save money.
Most professionals and insurers recommend keeping an unoccupied home’s thermostat between 55 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit all winter, never lower (Insurify). That’s warm enough to keep the water inside your pipes from reaching freezing temperature, even in the coldest interior spaces of the house, without running up a heating bill the way keeping the thermostat at a normal living temperature would.
Don’t just set it and walk away, either. Use a programmable or smart thermostat if you have one, and if the furnace fails while you’re gone, you want to know before the pipes do. A local friend or family member with access to your house can help, but a smart thermostat that sends you a low-temperature alert is worth the investment for a home you won’t be visiting often.
Shut Off and Drain the Water Supply
If the home will sit unoccupied for an extended stretch — more than a few weeks — shutting off the water supply entirely and draining the lines is the safest option, because a frozen pipe with no water in it can’t burst.
To do this properly:
- Shut off the main water valve, typically located where the water line enters the home or near the water meter.
- Open every faucet in the house, including outdoor spigots, to let gravity drain the remaining water out of the lines.
- Flush each toilet once to clear the tank and bowl, then use a wet/dry vacuum or turkey baster to remove any water left in the bowl trap.
- Add a small amount of non-toxic, plumbing-safe antifreeze to toilet bowls, tub traps, and sink traps to protect the water that remains in the trap seals.
- Disconnect and drain any exterior hoses, and shut off separate valves for outdoor spigots or irrigation lines if your home has them.
If you’d rather not tackle a full water shutdown yourself, a licensed plumber can winterize the entire system in about 3-4 hours, which is often worth it for a home that you won’t be checking on regularly.
Insulate Exposed Pipes and Seal Drafts
Even with the heat running, some pipes are more exposed than others. Particularly those in crawl spaces, unheated basements, attics, garages, and along exterior walls. Wrap these in foam pipe insulation or heat tape before you leave, and check that any crawl space vents or garage doors are fully sealed against drafts.
Small gaps matter more in an unoccupied home than an occupied one, since there’s no one there to feel a cold draft and investigate. Walk the exterior of the house and seal obvious gaps around pipe penetrations, dryer vents, and foundation cracks with caulk or expanding foam before winter sets in.
What to Do With Your Water Heater While the Home Sits Empty
A water heater left running with no one using hot water isn’t doing much good, and an older unit sitting idle can also develop leaks that go unnoticed. That’s why, if the home will be empty for more than a month, it’s best to turn the water heater to its lowest setting (or vacation mode, if it has one) rather than shutting it off completely, unless you’re draining the whole system.
Keeping it at a low simmer instead of a full shutoff protects the tank and internal components from the stress of repeatedly cooling down and heating back up, and it means you won’t come home to cold showers while it reheats from scratch. If you are fully winterizing the plumbing, drain the water heater tank as part of that process.
Protect Electrical and HVAC Systems While You're Away
Winterizing isn’t just about pipes. Have your furnace inspected and serviced before you leave it running unattended for weeks. One of our HVAC technicians can catch a failing igniter or a clogged filter that could otherwise leave the house without heat right when it matters most. Replace the air filter before you go, since a dirty filter restricts airflow and makes the system work harder with no one there to notice a problem developing.
It’s also worth having an electrician confirm that any sump pump, water heater, or smart thermostat you’re relying on has reliable power, and that GFCI outlets in bathrooms, kitchens, and garages are functioning correctly. A sump pump is especially important in an unoccupied home, since a winter thaw or a burst pipe upstairs can send water toward the basement with nobody there to catch it early.
Ask Someone to Check on the Home Regularly
No amount of preparation replaces a set of eyes on the property. Ask a neighbor, family member, or a friend to walk through the home every one to two weeks, confirm the heat is working, look for any signs of water, and make sure nothing else has gone wrong.
Check Your Homeowners Insurance Policy Before You Leave
Many standard homeowners insurance policies limit or exclude coverage for damage that happens while a home sits unoccupied, often after a set period like 30 days. According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, coverage for burst pipe damage typically depends on whether the homeowner took reasonable steps to prevent freezing, such as shutting off the water supply or maintaining adequate heat, and a policy may specifically require the water to be shut off if the home is left unoccupied.
Call your insurance agent before you leave to confirm your policy’s vacancy terms, ask whether you need an unoccupied home endorsement or separate policy, and get clear on exactly what precautions your insurer expects you to take.
Protect Your Unoccupied Home This Winter
Leaving a home empty for the winter doesn’t have to mean gambling on frozen pipes and a flooded basement. Keep the heat above 55°F, shut off and drain the water for longer absences, insulate the vulnerable spots, and put someone you trust in charge of checking on the property. Do those four things consistently, and you’ll avoid the vast majority of the winter emergencies that catch unoccupied homeowners off guard.
If you’re weighing whether to winterize a home yourself or have it done, our plumbers walk through pipe freezing basics and prevention in How to Protect an Older Home’s Plumbing, which is worth a watch before you decide.
When you’re ready to have the job done right the first time, schedule a unoccupied home winterization visit with our plumbing team, from the main shutoff to the water heater.
We serve homeowners across Columbus, Dayton, Cincinnati, and Southern Ohio. If you manage a property that regularly sits unoccupied between tenants or seasons, our EcoFi Advantage Membership includes seasonal maintenance checks that catch small problems, like an aging water heater or a failing furnace part, before they become the reason you’re calling us in an emergency.
FAQs
What's the difference between an "unoccupied" home and an "unoccupied" home for insurance purposes?
Insurers typically define "unoccupied" as a home with furniture and belongings still inside but no one living there day to day, while "unoccupied" usually means the home is empty of both people and most possessions. The distinction matters because many policies apply stricter exclusions, or require a separate endorsement, once a home crosses from occupied into unoccupied.
Should I disconnect my washing machine's water supply lines in an unoccupied home?
Yes. Washing machine hoses are a common source of undetected leaks, and rubber or braided lines can fail with no one around to notice for weeks. Shut off the dedicated valves behind the machine, or disconnect the hoses entirely, even if you're not draining the rest of the plumbing system.
What's the best type of pipe insulation for Ohio winters?
Closed-cell foam pipe sleeves are the standard choice for most residential lines and are inexpensive and easy to install yourself. For pipes in especially cold, exposed areas like an unheated crawl space or garage, self-regulating heat tape under the insulation adds an extra layer of protection during Ohio's harder cold snaps.
Can a security camera or smart sensor help catch problems in an unoccupied home before they get worse?
Yes. A camera pointed at a basement or utility area, paired with a water leak sensor near the water heater or main shutoff, can alert you the moment something looks wrong instead of waiting for your next in-person check-in. These are inexpensive compared to the cost of water damage that goes unnoticed for days.
As a landlord, is winterizing a rental between tenants different from winterizing a home you own long-term?
The core steps are the same, but landlords should also change the locks or codes, confirm the utilities stay active in the property's name rather than a departed tenant's, and document the home's condition with photos before it sits empty. This protects you if a dispute comes up later about when any damage occurred.
