"It hardly ever gets that cold here. Do I really need to do anything to my rental before winter?"
I hear that every October from owners in Keller, Roanoke, Northlake and Haslet. And every winter I get the call that follows it: a water line burst behind a wall. Usually the cause was a $5 hose-bib cover that never went on, or an irrigation backflow preventer nobody insulated.
North Texas winters are mostly mild. That's exactly the problem. Owners treat them as an afterthought, and one hard freeze can cost more than the rest of the year's maintenance combined. Here's the winter prep checklist we run on the rental homes we manage across north DFW, and what I'd tell any owner to get done before the cold shows up.
The Short Answer
Get your rental's winter prep done by mid-November. The National Weather Service's Fort Worth office puts the average first freeze for Dallas/Fort Worth on November 22, and the earliest on record came on October 22, 1898 (NWS Fort Worth Freeze Summary). Suburbs north of the city can run colder than the official reading.
And nobody around here has forgotten February 2021, when DFW bottomed out at −2°F on February 16. Your house doesn't have to survive that every year. It just needs to be ready in case it does.
1. Protect the Exterior Plumbing
This is where most freeze damage starts, and it's the cheapest fix on the list.
- Hose bibs: Disconnect garden hoses and put an insulated cover on every outdoor faucet. A hose left attached traps water in the line, where it can freeze and crack the pipe inside the wall, which is where the expensive damage happens.
- Irrigation backflow preventers: These are the brass assemblies, usually near the foundation or by the meter. They sit fully exposed and break constantly in hard freezes. Insulate them, or have the system shut off and drained.
- Pool equipment: If the home has a pool, confirm the pump's freeze-protection setting actually works. If it doesn't have one, make sure someone owns the plan for keeping water moving during a hard freeze.
The American Red Cross recommends draining pool and sprinkler supply lines according to the manufacturer's or installer's directions, removing and draining outdoor hoses, and closing the inside valves that feed outdoor hose bibs where a home has them.
2. Service the Heating System Before You Need It
Furnace problems show up with the first real cold snap, which is exactly when every HVAC company in Tarrant and Denton counties is booked solid.
- Book the tune-up early: Schedule a heating check in October or early November, not after the first 30-degree night.
- Gas furnaces: Have the technician inspect the heat exchanger and the safety controls.
- Filters: Replace the filter. (Here's why that matters more than most owners think.)
- Alarms: Test the smoke alarms and any carbon monoxide detectors while you're there.
A heating failure in an occupied rental is more than an inconvenience. Under Texas law, once a tenant gives proper notice of a condition that materially affects the physical health or safety of an ordinary tenant, and the tenant is current on rent, the landlord has to make a diligent effort to repair it (Tex. Prop. Code § 92.052). It's far better to find a bad igniter in October than at 9 p.m. on a 25-degree night with a family in the house.
3. Check the Attic, Garage and Exterior Walls
Pipes in unheated spaces freeze first. Walk the house and look at:
- Attic supply lines: Especially in two-story homes with an upstairs laundry or bathroom.
- The garage: Water heaters and supply lines there sit in unheated air.
- Exterior walls: Kitchen and bath sinks on outside walls are classic trouble spots.
Foam pipe sleeves are cheap and take minutes to install. If a home had a frozen pipe in 2021 or a later cold snap, find out exactly where, and fix that spot for good rather than hoping it holds next time.
4. Make Sure the Tenant Knows the Plan
This is the step that gets skipped most often, and it saves the most homes. Before the first freeze, we send every resident a short winter reminder covering:
- The main water shutoff: Where it is and how to close it.
- Thermostat settings: Keep the same temperature day and night during hard freezes, and no lower than 55°F when traveling (that's Red Cross guidance).
- Cabinet doors: Open them under sinks on exterior walls so warm air can reach the pipes.
- Dripping faucets: Let a faucet served by exposed pipes drip on the coldest nights.
- Garage doors: Keep them closed if water lines run through the garage.
- Emergencies: How to report one, and to report it right away. Our maintenance line answers 24/7 at (304) 878-8629.
A resident who knows where the shutoff is can turn a flooded house into a routine plumbing call.
5. Plan for the Vacant House
A vacant rental in January is the riskiest situation an owner can be in. Nobody is there to hear a pipe let go. If your home will be between tenants during freeze season:
- Keep the utilities on: Leave the heat running at a safe temperature. Don't shut everything off to save a few dollars.
- Check after every hard freeze: Have someone walk the property after each one.
- Before an arctic event: Consider shutting off water at the main and draining the lines.
Also pull out your insurance policy. Some policies limit coverage for freeze damage when a home is vacant, so know your terms before winter, not after a claim.
The Property Management Angle
None of this is complicated. It just has to get done on every home, every year, before the forecast says it's too late. That's a big part of what our maintenance team handles for owners. We schedule the prep, send the resident reminders, and keep a vendor bench ready for the morning after a freeze, when everyone else is scrambling to find a plumber.
Between Parker and me, we bring 22+ years of combined property management experience, and we've seen what a single overlooked hose bib can cost. If you'd rather not be the one crawling into the attic in November, take a look at how we manage homes in Keller, Roanoke and Northlake, or see our pricing.
This post is general information, not legal or insurance advice. Check your own lease and policy for specifics.
Want a Second Set of Eyes on Your Rental?
If you own a rental in Keller, Roanoke, Northlake, Haslet, Flower Mound or anywhere nearby and aren't sure it's ready for winter, I'm happy to talk it through. It's a free, no-obligation conversation, and I'll give you an honest read whether or not you ever hire us. Call (304) 878-8629 or reach out through our contact page.
