In alt.home.repair, on Tue, 05 Feb 2019 23:46:01 -0500, Clare Snyder
wrote:


Dang. Well, I still will know mine works because I turn on the
basement sink to drain the water out of the system and if the valve were
leaking it would come out that faucet. I'll admit this is one of the
last things I do, so in honor of your scarey story, I'll do it 10
minutes earlier to make sure the water isn't even dripping.

Which was the mistake he made. In a big 2 storey house, shut it off
and drain AT LEAST an hour before leaving - and the laundry tub still
leaves about 3 feet of vertical between the tap and the watermain
shut-off

Okay, you've convinced me. I've been doing it at the last minute
because I wanted a toilet to use until the last minute, but with tank
toilets (and not flushometers) draining the pipes really has nothing to
do with the antifreeze, except for the drain the basement sink, where
the pipes drain.

I can separate the two things, drain the pipes earlier, leave a toilet
not yet flushed, and flush it at the last minute and add the antifreeze.