Strasburg, VA homes and business buildings both are known for extensive use of piping and plumbing networks.
At any time, these can be overloaded to the point of bursting. Often when a pipe bursts it will instantly begin damaging important infrastructure or building components around it. Even worse, it can get on electrical equipment and pose a safety hazard. Burst pipes are risky to attempt to fix on your own, that’s why should always use a certified local plumber. As time passes, you risk developing more problems, especially if you attempt a quick DIY fix. Only a local pro in Strasburg, VA should repair the damage, but you need to know what steps to take to minimize your repair expense and safety hazard risk. Additionally, you need to know who to call.
- Mind the electrical hazard: Immediately shut off all breakers or main switches if there are any electrical components, fixtures or wiring in danger of coming in contact with the water. Electrical shorts can damage electrical connections permanently, fry connected devices and even cause a shock hazard to people. Make sure you prioritize the electrical dangers or you could have further repairs, or a hospital bill to worry about.
- Water heaters: There aren’t many other plumbing related devices which store water but this step would apply to them as well. You’ll want to drain the water heater connected to the burst pipe as it stores its own supply of water, so cutting off the water line does not necessarily mean no water will flow. In fact, if you don’t empty your water heater, then you may have ONLY hot water coming out of the pipe, offering anyone nearby a real scare, and potentially a burn risk. Water heaters have a drain somewhere on the main tank, so it should be quite easy just to let all the water out. DO NOT forget to turn off the water heater or you will probably break it.
- Cut off the water flow: Buildings differ with both location and age so, depending on your building, you will need to find where the main stop valve to your water supply is located and shut it off. Larger commercial buildings may have separate valves controlling separate water lines, in which case you should only shut off the one with the burst pipe. Once the water has been cut off, you must also go to all hot and cold water faucets or spigots of any kind and turn them on so let out any remaining water. This will minimize further spilling and damages.
We want all Strasburg, VA locals to be as safe as possible during burst pipe emergencies. Once both you and those affected are safe, contact local renowned plumbing professional, Powell’s Plumbing at (540) 465-9186 for expert burst pipe repair at affordable rates. We offer same day service.