5 Steps To Take Immediately After a Pipe Breaks

1/19/2021 (Permalink)

Cut off the electricity after a pipe breaks

Winter storms can cause havoc outside your home with the buildup of snow, howling winds, and never-ending rain, but sometimes the unexpected occurs, and a storm causes your home’s pipes to freeze and break. When the temperatures fall to a record low, and you find yourself with bursting pipes, here are five steps to take as soon as you find the problem.

Five Steps to Take After a Pipe Burst

1. Turn off the water.

To prevent additional water damage, make sure you turn off the water at the nearest valve. This may also eliminate the chance of any other weakened pipes breaking during the repair.

2. Cut off the electricity.

Active electricity in an area with standing water is rarely a good thing. So, turn the breaker off that supplies electricity to the area to make sure everyone working to fix the broken pipe is safe.

3. Contact your insurance company.

Letting your insurance company know about the bursting pipes and water problem can start the claim process. The insurance company can then send someone to view the damage.

4. Call a remediation service.

Calling in water remediation service technicians to check the situation and help you clean and disinfect the area is a good idea. Removing the standing water as soon as possible helps stop the growth of mold and any possible secondary damage.

5. Document the scene.

Using your phone or a camera, take photos of the area before, during and after the water removal process. You may also want to list each item that needs to be repaired or that is discarded.

The winter storms can be brutal as they batter Ogden, UT, with their frozen tendrils. When you find a storm has caused bursting pipes in your home, take the five steps above to help rectify the situation as quickly as possible. Don’t forget to ask the technicians for ideas about preventing future pipe damage.