Frozen & Burst Pipe Repair in Lakewood
A frozen pipe is a warning; a burst pipe is an emergency. If water is coming through a ceiling or a wall right now, close the main water shutoff and call (216) 238-6858.
If a Pipe Has Burst
- Close the main water shutoff. It is usually in the basement on the water line next to the meter, where the line comes through the front wall.
- Open a faucet on the lowest floor to let the water still in the pipes drain out, instead of through the split.
- Keep away from wet electrical outlets and fixtures. If water is near the electrical panel, do not touch it; call the electric company.
- Call us at (216) 238-6858. Tell us where the water is coming from and which floor it is on.
- Move what you can out of the water and take photos of the damage for your records.
If a Pipe Is Frozen
The sign is usually one faucet that gives a trickle or nothing at all on a cold morning, while the rest of the house has water. Sometimes you can see frost on the pipe.
- Open the faucet, so melting ice has somewhere to go and you can tell when water flows again.
- Warm the pipe with a hair dryer or a space heater kept at a safe distance, starting at the faucet end and working back.
- Never use an open flame or a torch. It can start a fire inside the wall and can burst the pipe by heating it too fast.
- If you cannot reach the frozen section, cannot find it, or the water does not come back within an hour, call us.
Where Pipes Freeze in Lakewood Homes
Our houses were built with the plumbing wherever it was easiest at the time, and later additions put pipes in places that were never meant to be warm. These are the usual trouble spots.
| Location | Why It Freezes | Prevention |
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen sink on an outside wall | The supply lines run through a cold exterior wall into a closed cabinet | Open the cabinet doors on cold nights; let a thin stream run; move the lines inside |
| Outdoor faucet | A connected hose traps water in the faucet body | Disconnect hoses in fall, close the inside shutoff and drain it; install a frost-free faucet |
| Enclosed porch or addition | Built over an unheated crawl space, with pipes in the floor | Insulate the pipes and the crawl space, or reroute the lines through heated space |
| Basement rim joist | Cold air leaks in where the house sits on the foundation | Seal the drafts and insulate pipes that run along the outside wall |
| Upstairs bath on an outside wall | Old walls with little insulation around the supply lines | Keep the room heated and the door open; insulate or reroute during a remodel |
Repairs and Lasting Fixes
After a burst, we cut out the split section and replace it, then check the rest of that line, because ice often damages more than one spot. Where the old pipe is galvanized steel, it rarely makes sense to splice new pipe onto old; we replace the run back to a sound fitting.
The better repair is the one that keeps it from happening again: moving a line out of an outside wall, insulating a run over a crawl space, or replacing an old outdoor faucet with a frost-free one whose valve sits inside the warm basement. We will tell you which of these is worth doing for your house.
Getting Ready for Winter
- Disconnect garden hoses and drain the outdoor faucets before the first hard freeze.
- Know where your main shutoff is and make sure it turns. An old valve that will not close is worth replacing in October, not during a flood.
- Seal drafts around basement windows and the rim joist near water pipes.
- Insulate pipes in crawl spaces, porches and garages with foam sleeves.
- Keep the heat at 55°F or higher when you are away, including in the empty unit of a double.
Frozen Pipe Questions
Should I let my faucets drip on cold nights?
On the faucets fed by pipes in outside walls, yes. A thin, steady stream of cold water, about the thickness of a pencil lead, keeps water moving and relieves pressure if ice starts to form. It costs very little compared with a burst pipe. Open the cabinet doors under those sinks too, so warm room air reaches the pipes.
How cold does it have to get before pipes freeze?
It depends on where the pipe is. A line in a heated room is safe in almost any weather. Pipes in outside walls, over crawl spaces, in enclosed porches and near drafty basement windows are at risk once the temperature outside drops into the teens and stays there, and wind makes it worse. The same pipes tend to freeze every winter, which is a good reason to fix them for good.
Why did my pipe burst after it thawed?
The damage happens while the pipe is frozen. Ice expands and squeezes the water between the ice and a closed faucet until the pipe splits. You only notice when the ice melts and water comes through the split. That is why any pipe that has frozen should be checked along its whole length once it thaws.
We are going away in winter. What should we do?
Leave the heat on, set to at least 55°F, and ask someone to check the house. For a longer trip, close the main water shutoff and open a faucet on the lowest floor to drain the pressure. If the house will sit empty for weeks, the plumbing can be drained completely; call us to talk it through.
Pipe burst? Close the main shutoff, then call.
If a pipe is frozen but has not burst, call and we will talk you through it or come and thaw it safely. Open Mon–Fri 8:00 am – 11:30 pm and Sat–Sun 8:00 am – 10:00 pm.