ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 3 -- United States Patent no. 12,404,963, issued on Sept. 2.
"Water pipe winterizing assembly" was invented by Ruben Sandoval (Grants, N.M.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A water pipe winterizing assembly includes a pipe has a female hose coupling for engaging a hose bib on a building. A heating unit is attached to the pipe and the heating unit heats the pipe when the heating unit is turned on to inhibit the hose bib and associated water pipes from freezing. An insulating pad is positioned around the pipe and the insulating pad is comprised of a thermally insulating material thereby inhibiting thermal communication between the pipe and ambient air. A cover is positionab...