What to Do in the First Hour After a Pipe Bursts

Minute One, Shut Off the Water

A burst half inch pipe can pour out several gallons a minute. Shutting off the water is the only thing that matters in the first minute. Everything else can wait a few seconds.

If the break is past a fixture valve, like the line to a toilet or sink, close that small valve. For anything else, go straight to the main shutoff.

• In homes with a basement, the main is usually on the wall where the water line enters, near the meter.
• In slab homes, look on an outside wall near the front hose faucet, in the garage, or in a utility closet.
• In a crawlspace home, it may be under the house near the front.

A round handle is a gate valve. Turn it clockwise until it stops, but do not force an old one, since the stem can break. A lever handle is a ball valve. Turn it a quarter turn so the lever sits across the pipe.

If the house valve will not close or you cannot find it, use the curb valve in the meter box near the street. It usually needs a curb key or meter key. If you cannot reach it, call your water utility’s emergency line.

Make the Area Electrically Safe

Once the water is off, think about electricity before you walk into the wet area.

If water is spraying on or pooling near outlets, power strips, appliances or the electrical panel, stay out of the water. Turn off power to that area at the breaker panel only if you can reach the panel standing on a dry floor with dry hands. If the panel itself is wet or in standing water, do not touch it. Call your electric utility or an electrician.

Water coming through a ceiling light or fan is a danger sign. Do not use that switch. Turn off the breaker for that circuit, or the main breaker, from a dry spot.

Ceilings below a burst pipe on an upper floor can fill with water and sag. A sagging ceiling can drop without warning, and the water it holds is heavy. Keep everyone out from under it. The ceiling leak guide explains how to relieve a bulge safely.

Once power is safely off, you can move into the area with rubber boots to start cleanup.

Drain the Lines and Protect the Water Heater

Even with the main off, water in the pipes keeps draining out of the break. You can speed that up and take pressure off the system.

1. Open a cold faucet on the lowest level of the house, such as a basement sink, laundry tub or outside hose faucet.
2. Open a faucet on the highest floor to let air in so the lines drain faster.
3. Flush toilets once to empty their tanks if the break is near a bathroom.

Then deal with the water heater. With the main off, the heater is no longer being refilled.

• For an electric heater, turn off its breaker. Elements can burn out if the tank drains and they switch on dry.
• For a gas heater, turn the control to pilot or vacation so the burner does not keep firing.
• Do not drain the water heater unless the break is on its lines and a plumber tells you to.

If the burst line is a hot water pipe, the water will be hot. Wait until it stops before you reach near the break.

Find the Break

With the water off, find exactly where the pipe failed. That tells the plumber what to bring and tells you where the water went.

• Follow the water to its highest point. The break is usually above the wettest area.
• Look for a split, a bulge, a blown off fitting or a pinhole spray mark.
• Check where pipes run along exterior walls, in attics, crawlspaces, garages and under sinks on outside walls. These are the spots that freeze.

Frozen pipes are the most common cause of bursts in cold weather. Here is a fact that surprises people. The split is often not where the ice is. Ice forming in a pipe pushes water ahead of it toward a closed faucet, and the pressure builds in that trapped section until it splits. That is why a pipe can seem fine, then leak only after it thaws.

If the break is inside a wall or ceiling, you may see only a spreading stain. Do not cut into the wall until the power to that area is off. Cut a small inspection hole at the stain first, then enlarge it.

Photograph the break before any repair. Your insurer will want to see it.

Temporary Repairs That Actually Hold

A temporary repair can get water back on for the rest of the house while you wait for a plumber. None of these replace a proper repair.

A pipe cutter makes the square, clean cut that push fittings need. A hacksaw leaves a rough, angled end that may leak.

Turn the water back on slowly and watch the repair for several minutes. Keep a bucket under it and check again after an hour. If the pipe is galvanized steel or polybutylene gray plastic, a quick repair may not hold. Leave the main off and call a plumber.

Frozen Pipes That Have Not Burst Yet

If a faucet only trickles on a cold morning, a pipe is probably frozen but may not have burst. You may be able to prevent the burst.

1. Open the faucet the frozen pipe feeds. This relieves pressure and lets water flow as the ice melts.
2. Find the frozen section. It is usually in an exterior wall, crawlspace, attic or garage.
3. Apply gentle heat, starting near the faucet and working back toward the frozen area. Use a hair dryer, a heat lamp, a space heater kept well away from anything that can burn, or towels soaked in hot water.
4. Keep heating until full water pressure returns. Then check the pipe for leaks.

Never use an open flame, a propane torch or a charcoal heater. Torches start house fires, and indoor charcoal and fuel heaters produce carbon monoxide. Do not use electrical heat in standing water.

If you cannot find the frozen section or cannot reach it, call a plumber. Keep the faucet open and keep the house warm in the meantime.

Start Cleanup and Call the Right People

Once the water is off and the area is safe, the clock starts on mold. Materials that stay wet more than 24 to 48 hours can start to grow it.

• Take photos and video of everything before you move it.
• Pull standing water out with a wet/dry vacuum, mops and towels.
• Move furniture, rugs, electronics and papers out of the wet area.
• Run a dehumidifier and fans in the closed room.

You may need two different pros. A plumber repairs the pipe and gets your water back on. A water damage drying company extracts water, dries walls, floors and ceilings, and measures moisture until it is gone. Call the plumber first if you have no water, and call a drying company the same day if ceilings, walls or more than one room got wet.

Call your insurer the same day. A sudden pipe burst is the kind of loss most homeowner policies are built to cover, though the pipe repair itself may not be. Keep the failed section of pipe if the plumber cuts it out.

Step by Step

1. Close the Nearest Valve or the Main

   Close the fixture valve if the break is past one. Otherwise shut the main valve right away. Use the curb valve or call the water utility if the main will not close.

2. Check for Electrical Danger

   If water is near outlets, fixtures or the panel, stay out of it. Turn off breakers only from a dry spot with dry hands.

3. Drain the Lines

   Open a faucet on the lowest level and one on the top floor so the pipes empty faster.

4. Turn Down the Water Heater

   Switch off the breaker for an electric heater, or set a gas heater to pilot or vacation.

5. Find and Photograph the Break

   Follow the water to its highest point and find the split or failed fitting. Photograph it before any repair.

6. Make a Temporary Repair If Safe

   Fit a repair clamp or push-to-connect coupling if the pipe is accessible. Turn water on slowly and watch it for several minutes.

7. Remove Standing Water

   Use a wet/dry vacuum, mops and towels, and move belongings out of the wet area.

8. Start Drying and Make Calls

   Set up a dehumidifier and fans. Call a plumber, your insurer and, if walls or ceilings are wet, a drying company.

Mistakes That Make It Worse

• Not knowing where the main shutoff is. Hunting for it while water pours out is how small bursts become big claims.
• Forcing an old gate valve. The stem can snap, and then only the curb valve can stop the water.
• Thawing a pipe with a torch. It is a leading way to start a fire inside a wall.
• Turning the water back on at full pressure onto a quick repair. Open the valve slowly and watch.
• Waiting for the adjuster before drying. Most policies expect you to prevent further damage right away.

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