How do I know whether a burst pipe is still leaking?
Shut off the main valve and watch the water meter or the pressure gauge for a few minutes with every tap closed. If the meter still moves, water is still escaping, and the line has to be found before the house is checked for damage.
Some homes have a meter at the street that the homeowner can read. A reading that climbs while the taps are closed is a sign of a leak somewhere in the supply line. Note the time and the reading, so the crew can compare its own findings against yours.
If the water is still flowing after the main is closed, call (833) 490-5225 and say so. Do not dig or open walls to find the break yourself, because a line under pressure can spray once it is opened.
What does the crew open in a wall after a burst line?
The crew opens only the cavities where the moisture readings show water has been trapped. Each opening is kept as small as the readings allow, measured, photographed and explained before it is made.
Opening a whole wall is rarely needed. A small hole at the bottom plate or at a point the readings identify gives the crew access to dry the cavity and the framing, and it lets the crew see the insulation and the line where it runs.
Closing the opening is part of the job. The plumber repairs the line, and the wall is patched after the drying readings have reached the dry goal, so the repair does not trap moisture behind new drywall.
Is water from a burst line handled differently from storm water?
Water from a supply line usually starts clean, but it is handled as a separate job from water that came from a drain or a sewer. It can still soak a building, carry dust or debris from the wall cavity and need removal of soaked materials.
The crew tells you which kind of water it believes it has found, and it explains what that means for the materials that can be kept. Water that came back up a drain is a different job and is covered on its own page.
The drying method is much the same once the water is out. The difference lies in the first hour and in the decisions about what to remove, and those decisions are explained to the homeowner.
What moves the cost of burst pipe damage up or down?
The place the line broke, how long the water ran, how much of the building it reached, the number of cavities opened and the number of drying visits all change the cost. No figure is published here, and the price is explained and approved before work starts.
A break at an exposed point near a sink is usually a smaller job than one inside a wall that has run for hours. The more of the building the water has reached, the more readings and visits are needed.
The plumber's repair is priced separately from the drying. Ask the crew and the plumber for their estimates in writing, so you can see which part of the total each one covers.
Who should be called for the plumbing repair?
A plumber should repair the line. This page does not name a licence for the plumbing work in Louisiana, so ask the plumber in writing which licence or registration applies to the repair before it begins.
The drying company and the plumber are separate. The drying company removes the water and dries the building, and the plumber fixes the break. Each one is responsible for its own part of the work and its own paperwork.
Permits may be needed where the repair opens structure or changes the plumbing. The Bossier Parish and City of Bossier City permit offices answer repair-permit questions for their own jurisdictions. Confirm the requirement before the wall is closed.
