It's bone-chilling cold out there this winter!

Frozen pipes are a problem you never want to deal with but are all too common during extended cold snaps in winter like the one we are having.

I want you protected, so do me a favor and as soon as you are done reading this blog post, remove any hoses you have attached to your outdoor faucets and then go in the house and turn off the water to the outside faucet (also called a hose bibb or sill cock).

It is critical to remove any hoses attached to the outside faucet! An attached garden hose is sure recipe for frozen pipe damage this winter. Use a hair dryer if necessary to thaw out a frozen hose connection to the sill cock in order to remove the hose.

The sill cock only turns water on and off outside, there is (or is supposed to be) a water shut off valve inside the house for the outside faucet. You may have to do some investigating in your home following water supply lines to try and find the shut off valve. They are usually located near the outside faucet.

By removing any hoses and turning off the water supply to the sill cock you have averted major risk of water damage done by a burst frozen pipe.

Frozen water exerts thousands of pounds of pressure per square inch on a pipe and can burst it, causing flooding and major damage to your home. But there are right ways and wrong ways to thaw out a frozen pipe, and knowing how to perform this critical repair and prevent it from from occurring can save your home.

So read Thawing a Frozen Water Pipe and just chill out, don't freeze up! (Ouch!)

Is your chimney safe for Christmas this year? How about your furnace? Is it working properly and maintained? Heating systems need maintenance or else you're stuck!

Whether it's seasonal furnace maintenance or making sure your fireplace chimney is safe for a visiting Santa this Christmas, you'll find the information you need right here to keep your home's heating systems working properly. So check out these tutorials and don't get stuck this winter season!

The thermostat is the brain behind your furnace or boiler operating properly, and these little guys come in a variety of different types. Some have mercury switches inside, some use mechanical switches, some are digital, and programmable electronic models will do everything except wake you up in the morning!

With Anatomy of the Furnace Thermostat you'll learn the differences between these thermostat types, how they work and see if you want to upgrade. And learn how to troubleshoot and fix a faulty thermostat too!

And if you want to replace your old thermostat or decide to get an electronic model to save energy and money this heating season, then go ahead and do it because installing a thermostat is easy and I'll show you how.

Gotta love the water heater! Definitely a most convenient appliance. Hot water virtually on-demand is a luxury we've come to take for granted.

But like anything else, it takes energy to run. In the tutorial Water Heater Tips for Saving Energy and Operating Costs I'll explain how to easily save water, energy and money in your monthly utility bills.

If your water heater is on the fritz and needs a little TLC, then Troubleshooting a Tank Type Water Heater is what you want to read. From problems such as not enough hot water to a leaking water heater, it's covered.

And when it's time to replace that old water heater with a nice new, energy efficient unit, you'll just love it. And it's really not that hard to do. In the tutorial Replacing a Water Heater I'll walk you through the process, step-by-step. Doesn't matter if it's a gas or electric water heater. I'll show you how.

Then you can get that warm, cozy feeling yourself!