What to Do When Pipe Bursts?

Burst pipes can happen suddenly due to a wide range of issues, including old and deteriorated pipes, accidents during renovations, or pipes freezing in cold weather. No matter the cause, you need to take action as soon as you notice the pipe burst in home to prevent the situation from getting worse, and to mitigate water damage. These steps for what to do when pipe burst can help you ensure the best outcome.

What to Do When Pipe Bursts – Turn Off Your Main Water Supply

The first thing you should do is to turn off your main water supply. When you’re dealing with a pipe burst in home, then it’s going to continue filling your home with water until the water supply is shut off. If the flooding is due to a damaged toilet tank or water heater, then there is likely a shut-off valve for those specific fixtures that you can access more quickly.

In most cases, the main water supply valve will be in a utility room or basement, generally near where your hot heater is installed. In warmer climates, the main water supply valve can be beside the house outside. However, this is very uncommon in states like New York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, where cold temperatures would cause the pipe to freeze and burst.

Shutting off the main water supply valve will limit the damage caused by the burst pipe in home. If you’re wondering what to do when pipe bursts in your home, this is the very first step. With less water in your home, you’ll be dealing with less severe water damage that won’t spread to as many areas in your home.

Stay Out of the Water

If the burst pipe is causing significant flooding, you should stay out of the water whenever possible. Even with clean water from your pipes, there are a number of risks at hand. Water from other sources like sewage backups and external flooding is much more dangerous due to contaminants, but that doesn’t mean that flooding from a burst pipe is safe.

The water can pick up a variety of contaminants in your home, including some that are found in your flooring and walls. The water could be dirtier than it looks, so it’s best to stay out. It can also make floors incredibly slippery and can also obscure your vision of the floor and the things on it, creating a tripping hazard.

What to Do When Pipe Bursts – Turn Off Your Electrical Breaker

One of the most significant risks, when water enters your home, is actually the threat of electrocution. Your home has wiring running all throughout its walls, and these wires can electrify water when the water comes into contact with them. Entering a flooded room can present a serious electrocution risk.

This is true even if the water level hasn’t reached electrical outlets. You can’t see what’s behind your walls, so you don’t know exactly where the wiring is. In many cases, it can hang below the level of outlets. If any of this wiring isn’t fully insulated, it can electrify flood water just as quickly as contact with an outlet can.

Turning off the main electrical breaker or the breaker for the affected area is the best course of action. That way, you won’t have to deal with the risk of electrocution if you have to enter the flooded area. This can make moving around the area difficult without lighting, but you can rely on light from windows during the day or flashlights at night.

Call a Water Damage Restoration Company

Now that the incoming water has been stopped and you’ve dealt with the risk of electrocution, it’s time to deal with the water damage to your home as quickly as possible. To do so, your best bet is to reach out to a professional water damage restoration company. Calling a plumber can help fix your pipes, but they aren’t going to be able to resolve the water damage that has already happened.

Restoration Operators is a water damage restoration company that is available 24/7 and can be onsite within just 45 minutes when water damage strikes. A rapid response is the most important element when dealing with water damage. As water continues to spread and soak into your home’s structure, it creates a more significant problem that requires more intensive repairs.

By calling a water damage restoration company, you’re ensuring that the right steps are going to be taken as quickly as possible. With the right water extraction pumps for the job, a water damage restoration company can rapidly remove water and stop the damage from spreading even further.

What to Do When Pipe Bursts? –
Drain Faucets and Fixtures

While turning off the main water supply was the most step to ensure that more water does continue entering your home, there’s still more to do. Your home contains many pipes running through its walls, and they’re all filled with water at any given time.

To prevent that water from running back and causing more flooding by providing additional pressure, you can drain your home’s faucets and fixtures. Open all the taps in your home to allow water to run out and remove any residual pressure from the system.

You should also flush any toilets as well. Start with any fixtures on floors higher than where the burst pipe is, as water can run back down through the system and provide significant additional pressure. This simple step can help reduce the amount of flooding from the burst pipe.

Call Your Insurance Company

When considering what to do when pipe bursts, you should remember your insurance. This should be one of the first calls you make after you’ve already reached out to a water damage restoration company. Calling your insurance company quickly after the burst pipe can make the process go much more smoothly.

Your insurance company will need a variety of details to process your claim properly. You won’t have all of that information as soon as you call, but it’s best to get the claims process underway sooner rather than later. You’ll be able to finalize your claim sooner and put the entire experience behind you faster.

When filing an insurance claim, you’re going to need a professional inspection to catalog the damage to your home. The water damage restoration company you contacted will be able to provide that. Restoration Operators has years of experience dealing with insurance claims and can help you handle yours much more effectively.

Remove Affected Items

While the biggest concerns about water damage from a burst pipe are walls and flooring, the possessions in your home are also important. Many items you own can be damaged by prolonged contact with water, and letting them sit there will only make things worse.

You should move items out of the water and somewhere they can dry as soon as possible. While in cases like sewage backups, you would have to worry about health risks, the water from a burst pipe is clean and uncontaminated. That means you can move things yourself to get them out of the water sooner.

The water can still be spreading even after you turn off the main water line. It can run into other rooms and areas in your home. Moving nearby items out of the way can stop them from getting wet in the first place, which is a lot easier than dealing with water damage to wooden furniture, fabrics, and other materials.

Open Windows and Doors

The water damage restoration company you called will be able to provide professional drying that will deal with residual moisture in your home. However, you can increase drying right away by opening windows and doors throughout your home if the weather permits.

By allowing the free flow of air through your home, materials and objects will dry out more quickly. Air can only carry so much moisture, and allowing for better ventilation ensures that a ready supply of dry air from outside is removing moisture from your home.

This won’t provide much benefit until the water damage restoration company has extracted standing water, but there’s no reason not to do it while you’re waiting for their arrival. It can also help dry out any materials you remove from the affected areas.

Make Sure You Get Professional Water Damage Restoration

Once professional water damage restoration experts arrive, they’ll be able to start dealing with the water damage caused by the burst pipe. First, they’ll remove the standing water that is causing continual damage to your home. With powerful pumps, they can quickly extract water and prevent it from seeping further into your flooring and walls.

Then, they’ll carry out cleanup and sanitization to make sure that your home is livable. Even with clean water from a burst pipe, there is still significant cleanup needed to get your home livable again. They’ll also have to remove affected drywall and some types of flooring.

After that, they’ll use professional drying equipment to draw out moisture from your home’s walls and flooring. Water can seep deeply into these porous materials, which can be a big issue later on. Professional drying equipment removes that moisture in a reasonable timeframe. 

Prevent Mold Issues

A professional water damager restoration company can also ensure that you won’t be dealing with mold down the line. The water that works its way into walls and flooring provides moisture for mold to grow, and that mold can spread throughout your home.

With professional drying, they can remove that water source to stop mold growth. Proper sanitization also kills mold spores and can drastically reduce the risk of dealing with mold growth in the future. Dealing with mold now is the right way to go because dealing with it later can be much more costly.

Take Steps to Prevent Future Pipe Burst in Home

Now that you’ve dealt with a burst pipe, you should take steps to avoid the same issue in the future. If it was due to cold weather, check to see if you may need additional insulation for your pipes. You should also have a plumber inspect the rest of your home’s pipes to see if they’re worn down or deteriorated.

Plan Reconstruction

Once the emergency situation has been dealt with, you’ll likely need some reconstruction. Drywall will have to be replaced, and some types of flooring may have to be replaced as well. A good reconstruction company can provide you with a wide range of options to restore your home to its original condition or even make a few changes while you’re at it.

Your Water Damage Restoration Specialists

Wondering what to do when pipe bursts in your home? Just call Restoration Operators. We’ll be onsite within just 45 minutes to start dealing with your water damage emergency. Our specialists are available 24/7, so please call any time, night or day. For the best results, you need service from true professionals – and that’s exactly what Restoration Operators has to offer.