Burst Pipe Repair

Shut off and drain

Close the main valve first. Then open the lowest tap in the house, usually a basement laundry tub or outdoor faucet, and the highest one upstairs. That lets air in and drains the water still sitting in the pipes, which reduces how much leaks out of the split. Switch off power to any wet circuits if you can reach the panel safely, and move what you can off the floor.

Why pipes freeze

Water grows as it turns to ice. In a pipe, the ice plug does not usually split the pipe where the ice is; it builds pressure in the water trapped between the ice and a closed tap, and the pipe gives at its weakest point there. Common trouble spots in Aurora homes include:

• Supply lines along exterior walls in kitchens and bathrooms over garages
• Hose bibs without frost-free valves
• Pipes in unheated crawlspaces and cantilevered floors
• Lines near air leaks around sill plates and dryer vents

Thawing safely

If a tap gives only a trickle in deep cold, a pipe may be partly frozen. Open that tap, then warm the suspected section gently with a hair dryer, or a small heater parked a safe distance away. Begin closest to the tap and work back. Never use an open flame or torch on a pipe inside a wall or near wood framing. If you cannot reach the frozen section, call us before it splits.

Repair and rerouting

A small split in copper is cut out and replaced with a new section. PEX that has burst is usually swapped between fittings. When a pipe has frozen more than once, the better repair moves it to the warm side of the insulation or into an interior wall, rather than putting it back in the same cold spot. We also look for the draft that froze it, and point it out so you can seal it.