You'll Need Help From An Emergency Plumbing Service When Your Main Water Pipe Bursts
Posted on: 19 April 2023
A plumbing leak is a bad surprise, and one of the worst to have is a leak in your water main on the far side of your main shut-off valve. When this happens, you can't stop the leak by turning off the valve.
The only way to stop the water is to call an emergency plumbing service for help. They have the tools needed to shut off the water at your meter as long as your local water company allows them to do so. Here's how a plumber might handle this emergency plumbing repair.
Stop The Leak And Plan Repairs
A bad thing about a leak in a water main is when the meter is shut off, you won't have any water for your house. Your plumber will discuss the situation and figure out how to proceed. You may need to stay elsewhere until repairs can be done, or you might fill some water jugs to have drinking water while you wait. However, you won't have water for the toilet or sinks either.
The plumber may go to work immediately if it's daylight. If the leak happens at night, the plumber might prefer to wait until the next day if digging in your yard will be needed. Plus, the plumber may do a video inspection of the pipe to help determine how to proceed.
Do A Video Inspection
A plumber can run a pipe camera into the water line to see the problem. The camera also has a locating device, so once the burst area is found, you can locate and mark it from the surface of the yard. The broken pipe could be easy to repair or quite difficult depending on the type of pipe and the location of the crack.
Repair The Leak
The plumber might need to dig up the area above the crack or they may need to dig a trench from the water meter to your water main shut-off. This depends on whether the plumber will replace the entire pipe or just patch it.
A potential problem is when the pipe goes under your porch, sidewalk, or driveway. The plumber may need to avoid digging up the pipe in those areas, and if so, they may choose to pull a liner through the pipe rather than dig it up.
If the plumber decides not to dig up the pipe, they can repair it by pulling a pipe liner through. The liner has an adhesive that cures and sticks to the inside of the old pipe so the liner hardens into a new pipe that seals the crack and stops the leak. This is easier and less disruptive than digging up the bad pipe. It's a good choice when the water pipe goes under a driveway or other concrete surface.
For more information on emergency plumbing, contact a professional near you.
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