Solutions for burst pipes
The Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety reportsthat freezing pipes is the number one source of cold-weather property damage and estimates that the related water damage can end up costing a homeowner $9,000 or more. If you've just woken up or arrived back home to discover a burst pipe somewhere in your house, it's too late to prevent a leak, of course, but the sooner you respond the better. The first step is to shut off the home's water supply at the main shutoff valve. After that, you have a couple of options, both of which eventually involve a plumber.
Step 1: Turning off the water supply
If you don't know where you main water shutoff is, it's a darned good idea to familiarize yourself with it asap. If you live in a cold-winter climate, your shutoff valve is most likely located in your basement or crawlspace, because the water service line to the house enters the building from underground, where it won't freeze in winter. Look for a pipe coming through the foundation wall or up from the ground or floor. This may or may not have a meter attached to it. The shutoff valve is located after the meter. The valve may have a round handle (like the kind on outdoor hose spigots), or it could have a lever or other type of handle. If it's round, turn it counterclockwise to shut off the water. For other types, move the handle all the way to the marked "OFF" position. By the way, when you turn the water back on, make sure to open the valve all the way; it's meant to be completely open or completely closed.
If you can't find the shutoff valve in the basement or crawlspace, follow the main water line (typically a 3/4" pipe inside the house) toward your hot water heater; sometimes the shutoff is near the water heater. Houses in warm climates may have main shutoff valves outdoors.
Quick question: Should I shut off the electricity?
Many sources recommend shutting off the electricalpower to the entire house or at least to the area of the leak, to prevent fireworks resulting from the unhappy marriage of water and electricity. You do this by switching off the circuit breakersin your service panel (breaker box). Flip individual breakers to the "OFF" position for individual circuits, or flip the main breaker (usually at the top center of the breaker panel) to shut off the power to the entire house. Frankly, I'm not comfortable with either endorsing or discouraging this practice, but I am certain that you shouldn’t go near the breaker box if there's water anywhere in the area, including on the ground or floor below and on your person (that means you, in TV cop language).
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The Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS) reports that freezing pipes is the number one source of cold-weather property damage and estimates that the related water damage can end up costing a homeowner $9000 or more.