Blue rain barrels set under downspouts against painted walls

Drain the hoses, drip lines and rain barrel before the first hard freeze

Growing guides
November 06, 2026•4 min read

Water grows about 9 percent when it freezes, and a full rain barrel has nowhere to put the extra. A hard freeze can crack it, and the hose and drip lines beside it are next.

Know your date, then empty the barrel

Penn State Extension says to empty and disconnect the barrel before your area's median first hard freeze. A hard freeze means below 28 F for an extended stretch.

You can look up your own dates on the National Weather Service site by choosing "first/last dates" and entering 28 F. Leave the barrel disconnected until the median last hard freeze has passed in spring.

Ice can easily crack a wooden or plastic barrel, and ice left in all winter cuts how much rain it can catch.

Left outside? Turn a barrel with a screened top upside down, and strap or weigh down an empty plastic one so the wind does not take it.

A green garden hose coiled on pebbled paving Coiled and dry beats coiled and cracked.

Drain the drip lines and hoses

Iowa State Extension says to disconnect the drip system and bring the timer, regulator and backflow preventer indoors. Pull the end caps, lift the lines so they drain, and expect it to take several hours. Low spots can trap water. Fit the caps back on loosely.

For soaker hoses, it may be easiest to lift the whole thing, let it drain and store it indoors.

If a drip tape or soaker hose is already frozen in place, leave it alone and drain it after it thaws: moving it can damage it, per Oklahoma State Extension.

For garden hoses, UGA Extension says you can leave them hanging, disconnected from the faucets, or drain and store them somewhere with a steady temperature.

Open the valves, wrap what is exposed

Closed gate and ball valves trap water and can crack with repeated freezing and thawing, so open them. Exposed valves and backflow preventers can be taped or wrapped.

Skip the DIY air blowout on a sprinkler system. Oklahoma State Extension says leave that to a professional, since bad pressure can damage the system.

Bottom line

Your zone

  • Zone 3-4: Same rule, per Penn State Extension: empty and disconnect the rain barrel before the first hard freeze.
  • Zone 5-6: Penn State Extension puts Pennsylvania's typical first hard freeze anywhere from early October to late November, so look up yours.
  • Zone 7-8: UGA Extension says only the top few inches of ground freeze in most of Georgia, but ground-level valves are still at risk.
  • Zone 9-10: LSU AgCenter in Louisiana says to insulate pipes and bring hoses indoors before a freeze; Placer County Master Gardeners in California say to drain lines and hoses early.

Sources

helpzone 3-4zone 5-6zone 7-8zone 9-10zone 11+
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Garden Hero

We have killed more plants than you have grown. Rooted is what we learned, sourced to the extension office and written by your zone.

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