Burst or Frozen Pipe: The First 30 Minutes

A frozen pipe is a loaded spring. Water expands as it freezes, pressure builds behind the ice, and the pipe splits — often not where the ice is, but wherever the pressure finds the weakest point. When it thaws, the water comes out all at once. What you do in the first half hour decides whether you are paying for a repair or a renovation.

We are an independent plumbing-help guide, not a plumbing company. The phone service described here connects homeowners with plumbers who handle burst and frozen pipes through the winter.

The first 30 minutes

1. Shut off the main water valve. First, before anything else. Every minute of delay is more water in your walls and floors. Then open the lowest tap in the house to drain the lines.
2. Turn off electricity to wet areas at the breaker if water is near outlets, appliances or the panel. Water and wiring are a dangerous mix — if in doubt, keep out of the room.
3. Contain it. Buckets, towels, a plastic sheet over furniture. Move what you can out of the wet zone, including rugs and anything stored on the floor.
4. If a pipe is frozen but not burst, you can try gentle warmth — a hair dryer or warm towels on the exposed section, working from the tap backwards. Never an open flame: torches crack pipes and start fires.
5. Call a plumber and say the words "burst pipe" or "frozen pipe" right away. These calls are treated as emergencies, and describing the shut-off you have already done helps them prioritize and prepare.

Finding the damage

The split is not always where the ice was. Once the water is off, look along the run of the pipe — cold corners, exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated basements are the usual places. A plumber can pressure-test the line to confirm there is one break, not two. Resist the urge to turn the water back on "just to check" before the repair: a second flood doubles the damage.

Keeping it from happening next winter

• Let a tap drip slowly on the coldest nights — moving water resists freezing, and pressure has somewhere to go.
• Insulate exposed pipes in unheated spaces; the foam sleeves cost very little.
• Disconnect garden hoses and shut the outdoor tap's inside valve before the first freeze.
• Keep the heating on at a low setting when you travel in winter. A burst pipe in an empty house can run for days.

If the worst has already happened, do not spend the evening reading forums. Shut the water off, protect the house, and make the call — the rest is the plumber's job.

Disclaimer: Plumbing Help by Phone is a free service to assist homeowners in connecting with local service providers. All contractors/providers are independent and Plumbing Help by Phone does not warrant or guarantee any work performed. It is the responsibility of the homeowner to verify that the hired contractor furnishes the necessary license and insurance required for the work being performed. All persons depicted in a photo or video are actors or models and not contractors listed on Plumbing Help by Phone.