A: Lynn, you are a very good detective by asking questions relating to an unusually cold winter and a sudden plumbing problem that showed up at the same time. I'm a believer in the old saying that "there's no such thing as a coincidence," and I'll explain how your plumbing problem is most likely related to your very cold weather.

All plumbing fixtures, when properly installed, need a drain line to drain the water away from the fixture, a trap to create a water plug to stop odors, and a vent line to allow air in and out of the system. If for some reason the vent line becomes blocked, the drain line (when draining out the water) can create a vacuum in the line, and air can actually be sucked in through the "trap water" at the fixture. Air being sucked through a trap full of water usually sounds like the "glug" noise you mentioned. In some cases, the water seal at the trap can also be siphoned out and along with the noise you may get some odors as well.

So, it looks like we figured out your kitchen sink may have a blocked vent -- but what caused this? In some cases it may be a bird's nest, leaves, or debris that can fall into the open vent pipes on the roof. Or in your case it can be weather-related, like an ice blockage from the warm moist air coming up from the vents and frosting up the pipe.

I would sit tight and wait 'til you get a couple of warmer days in a row to see if any ice melts and the drain goes back to normal. If it stops, then you know in "unusually cold" stretches of weather you may hear the noise from time to time. If the problem still persists when the weather breaks, call a licensed plumber to manually clear and check the vent line. Either way we all learned today that when it comes to vent lines ... ice is not nice!