So yesterday morning I woke up to the sound of the phone -- my upstairs neighbours were calling to tell me that we had no water, and that the landlord was going to come and try to fix it. You don't want to leave the frozen pipes too long, because if they burst, you're dealing with thousands of dollars in cost.
The issue wasn't at the place where the pipes come into the house (we thought maybe the circulation pump had stopped and that the heat trace - an electric heating wire - hadn't come on). But in fact the problem was where the pipes run along the kitchen wall.
Well, a bit of hair dryer action behind the stove did the trick ...
And soon we had water for a hot shower :). Now just need to get a plumber to insulate the pipes better, and at least that issue should be behind us. Adventures in Arctic living.
I'm just glad that I rent, not own - I don't want the responsibility of a house up here. Too many things can go wrong!