Water removal, drying and reading of walls and floors after a frozen or split supply line floods a building.
Fastest: call (833) 490-5225. Or send this and we call you back.
Frozen and burst pipe damage is water released when a supply line freezes, splits and then runs as the ice thaws or the pressure is restored. A burst supply line is extracted and dried the same way as flood water from clean sources. Champaign Water Damage Restoration takes calls 24/7 and sends a local crew as soon as one is free.
A pipe that freezes does not always burst while it is frozen. The ice blocks the flow, and the pipe can split at a weak point while the pressure builds behind it. The water is usually held back until the line thaws or someone opens a tap, and then it runs out of the split and into the wall, the floor or the room below. That is why a frozen pipe can cause a flood on the day the weather changes, not on the coldest night.
The water from a burst supply line is clean, and that is the first thing a crew checks. It is removed fast and the materials it reaches are judged on the time they stayed wet. A wall cavity that has held water for a long time, a floor under a wet area and a basement with the water running down are each handled according to what the water did to them.
The repair of the pipe itself is plumbing work. The crew shuts off the water, removes the water from the building and dries the structure, and it tells you which plumber should repair the line. The repair is quoted and done by that plumber, and it is kept separate from the drying.
Do not use an open flame, a propane heater or a torch to thaw a pipe, because the heat can split it further or cause a fire. Shut off the main before touching a split line. Do not stand in water near the electrical panel or an outlet. Keep children and pets away from a pipe that is under pressure or spraying.
The building's main shut-off is found and closed as the first step. The line is stopped before any drying or extraction starts, so the water does not keep running into the building.
Water is pumped or extracted from the floors and the lowest rooms. Clean supply water is removed quickly, and the crew tracks where it ran so that the cavities are read.
Meters and a thermal camera show where the water went inside the building. Walls and floors in the path of the water are read at set points, and the readings are logged.
Walls and floors where the readings stay high are opened in small areas. The cavities are dried until the framing reads at the dry goal, and each visit is logged.
Once the building is dry, the crew tells you which plumber should repair the split line and which trade should repair the walls and floors. Repairs are quoted by those trades after the readings are at the goal.
If a pipe is frozen, the first step is to find the main shut-off and close it, and to stop any tap that is running. Do not use an open flame or a heater to thaw the pipe, because the heat can split it further or start a fire. Call the line if water has already reached the building.
A frozen pipe that has not yet split can sometimes be thawed slowly with warm air, but the thawing must be done carefully and without any open flame. If you are not sure, leave the pipe alone and call a plumber or the line for advice.
Open the taps on the frozen line only after the main has been shut off and the water is ready to be captured. A split pipe under pressure can release a lot of water quickly.
Water from a split supply line runs down the path of least resistance, which is often inside a wall cavity or along the top of a floor. It can then appear far from the split, in a lower room or at the base of a wall. The crew reads the route to find where it went.
A balloon-framed or open-cavity wall can carry water a long way down before it shows. The water can also soak the insulation and the sill, and that moisture can stay in the cavity for a long time.
The crew opens the wall where the readings are highest and dries the cavity from inside, so the water does not remain hidden behind the finish.
That depends on the policy, the cause of the burst and whether the freeze was preventable, and the insurer decides. Many policies treat a sudden burst differently from a long leak, and some require the building to be heated. Check the wording and ask your insurer.
This company does not decide what a policy pays. It provides the readings, photographs and the drying log that show when and where the water went, which the insurer will ask for.
Keep the damaged pipe if it is still available, since the plumber and the insurer may need to see the split. If the claim is handled badly, the Illinois Department of Insurance takes complaints about insurers.
Keep the building warm enough that its supply lines do not freeze, insulate lines in cold spaces, and know where the main shut-off is. A plumber can advise on the lines that are most exposed, and this company cannot advise on the building's plumbing.
Lines in an exterior wall, a crawl space or an unheated room are the most exposed. Insulating them and sealing the openings through which cold air reaches them are the usual steps, and a plumber can say which are needed for the building.
Make sure everyone in the building knows where the main shut-off is and how to close it. That minute can limit the water to a small area instead of a whole floor.
The price depends on how much water reached the building, how many floors and cavities it entered and what materials had to come out. The plumbing repair is priced separately by the plumber. No figure is given over the phone, and the price is explained and approved on site.
A split line that was shut off quickly and wet one room is a smaller scope than one that ran through several floors and into the basement. The crew explains which of those it is and what it will remove.
You approve the drying scope before equipment is set up, and the plumbing repair is approved separately with the plumber.
A supply line that runs through an exterior wall can freeze and split inside the cavity. The water runs down inside the wall and appears in a lower room or at the base of the wall, so the crew reads the wall from the inside.
A pipe in an unheated or lightly heated space can freeze and split, and the water collects on the floor or in the crawl space below. The crew pumps the water and dries the joists and the subfloor above.
A line hidden behind a finished wall can leak for some time before it is noticed. The crew opens the wall where the readings are highest and checks the cavity before it dries the framing.
Frozen supply lines are a concern in any building that has pipes in an exterior wall, a crawl space or an unheated room. The crew asks where the line runs in the building, because that tells it where to read the water and where to open the wall.
In Champaign and Urbana, the building type decides how a split line spreads. A house with a crawl space, a basement or a finished lower level gives the water a different route, and the crew reads each one in turn.
A line that froze and split on the campus side of town is handled the same way as one elsewhere. The building's owner is the person to tell the plumber about the line, and the crew records the route the water took so the plumber has the facts.
Tell us what's happening and we'll tell you honestly whether it's a quick fix, and what frozen and burst pipe damage should cost.
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
Water removal and drying for leaks from a water heater, its pan, its connections and its drain.
Pumping, moisture checks and drying for crawl spaces and basements that took in flood, storm or ground water.
Fast removal of standing water from floors and basements in Champaign, Urbana and the county around them.
Locating concealed water leaks behind walls, under floors and in crawl spaces in Champaign and Urbana.
A water damage claim in Illinois is decided by the insurer under the policy wording, and it turns on whether the water was sudden or gradual and what caused it.
No. The crew shuts off the water and dries the building. The pipe is repaired by a plumber, and the crew will tell you what it found so the plumber can plan the repair.
That depends on the pipe and the room. A split line can run for hours before it is noticed. The water meter and the readings in the walls help the crew estimate how long it ran.
Only where the readings show water under the floor. The crew reads the subfloor and the joists from the room below or from the opening it makes.
No. Standing water should be removed quickly, even if it is clean supply water, because it wets the materials and can lift flooring and cabinets.
Shut off the main first. The crew can read the wall from the room and open a small area where the readings are highest, so the water is reached without opening the whole wall.
Shut off the main, then call this line if water has reached the building, because it needs to be removed and dried. Call a plumber for the split line itself, and the crew will tell you when one is needed.