For those that worry about freezing pipes

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sarg

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Oct 26, 2020
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Location
Upstate New York
We live in a mobile home and our well line comes up through the slab. We have always had concerns about freezing because winter does bring below zero temperatures here. The entry line has heat tape and insulation but I've always had concerns about leaving it plugged in all winter during the "above freezing" spells.
Then a couple years ago I found about about these outlets.

Farm Innovators TC-3 Cold Weather Thermo Cube Thermostatically Controlled Outlet - On at 35-Degrees/Off at 45-Degrees
ThermoCube.jpg
 
Great device! Confirm it is rated for total heat tape load, otherwise it will prematurely fail in the dead of winter and leave you with no protection. I had one on the outside cats’ huts. It failed after a month or so a couple of times. I separated the heated huts and used two separate devices. No failures all of last winter.
 
I did the "freezer test" to be sure they function as advertised and another tip I found on the net was ......... plug a small led nightlight on one side of the outlet that will let you know at a glance if the unit is switched on. ( They are rated at 1800 watts )
 
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This is very cool! Where are they sold? I could probably use one in my well-house for a heater.
 
Thanks! I wonder if it's safe to use in damp areas. Was thinking of using it in my well house so we wouldn't have to go turn it off/unplug it when it warmed up a little.

Edit: Ooh, they have one for hot weather too so you can have a fan turn on when it gets too warm.
 
Combining the outlet with the remote thermometer eliminates one more thing to worry about ....... and having the small led nightlight in the mix lets you know it's functioning as it should.
 
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At a weekend home in central Michigan I had the hot water heater and some exposed piping in the garage. Fine for all but the extended cold spells in the single digits. I needed heat tape on these lines. The two I had over the years were thermostatically controlled, no special outlet needed. They also featured an indicator light to let you know when they were “on”.

Beware: don’t plug them into a GFCI. If it inadvertently pops and you don’t know it...
 
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