Burst Pipe Emergency
What to Do Now
Step-by-step burst pipe emergency response. What to shut off, what to move, what to document, and when to stop trying to handle it yourself.
📞 ACTIVE EMERGENCY? CALL NOW (855) 633-5065The short answer
Shut the main off. Cut power to wet rooms. Photograph everything. Move dry valuables. Call a restoration crew. Don't try to vacuum standing water with a regular vacuum.
Active leak right now? Stop reading and call dispatch. Damage compounds fast. Roughly $40 per hour, plus mold once you cross 24 hours of wet structure.
The first 60 minutes. What matters
The first hour after a water event is more important than every hour after. The decisions you make in that window determine whether you have a $2,000 problem or a $10,000 problem.
- Stop the source. Shut the main if it's a supply line. If it's a roof leak during a storm, get tarps up if you can do it safely.
- Cut power to wet rooms. Breaker panel only. Never reach into a wet room to flip a switch.
- Photograph everything. Wide shots, close-ups, source. Time-stamped.
- Call a 24/7 restoration crew. Not "I'll handle this myself." The math doesn't work. Equipment you'd rent costs more than calling pros, and you'd miss things they wouldn't.
- Move dry valuables. Lift wood furniture onto blocks or aluminum foil. Don't move wet electronics.
What NOT to do
- Don't try to vacuum standing water with a regular shop-vac. They're not rated for it. You'll wreck the vacuum and pull water into walls trying.
- Don't run a fan if mold's already visible. You'll spread spores into HVAC.
- Don't tear out drywall yourself. Let the crew document moisture first. Your insurance evidence depends on it.
- Don't argue with your spouse about whose fault this is. There's time for that later.
Free phone estimate. No paperwork.
Tell dispatch your situation, get a price range, decide. 24/7 live agent.
📞 Call dispatch — 11 sec avg (855) 633-5065Equipment our crews bring
What's actually on the truck when we arrive:
- Truck-mounted water extractor (50-100 GPM capacity)
- Portable extractors for hard-to-reach areas
- Industrial air movers (10-30 per job depending on scope)
- Desiccant dehumidifiers for difficult substrates
- Low-grain refrigerant dehumidifiers for concrete drying
- Moisture meters (pin and pinless)
- Thermal imaging camera
- HEPA air scrubbers (for any Cat 2/3 work)
- Antimicrobial chemicals (EPA-registered)
- Full PPE for Cat 3 calls
Why 60 minutes matters
Water damage compounds. The first hour is when the spread is fastest. Water finds floors, walls, then sub-floors and joists. After 24 hours, mold spores activate. After 48 hours, contamination is no longer Category 1; it bumps to Cat 2 even if the original water was clean.
That's why response time is in our pricing model. A 60-minute response keeps the job in the lower cost tier. A 6-hour response often pushes it up a category.
FAQ — Burst Pipe Emergency
How fast do you respond?
60 minutes or less for most SoCal ZIPs. 10 dispatch hubs across the region. After-hours, holidays, weekends. Same response.
What do I do in the first hour?
Shut the main. Cut power to wet rooms. Photograph everything. Move dry valuables. Call a 24/7 restoration crew. In that order.
Should I try to dry it myself?
You can run fans on small clean-water events under 50 sq ft. Anything larger or any contaminated water. Call. The math doesn't work for DIY on bigger events.
Will the crew make a mess?
The minimum necessary to fix the problem. Selective demolition, not aggressive tear-out. Older homes with lath-and-plaster get extra care.
What if I rent?
Call your landlord first. They'll usually want to dispatch the restoration company on their own insurance. We work with property managers across SoCal.
Do you handle commercial water damage too?
Yes. Small-to-medium commercial. Office water heaters, restaurant kitchens, retail dishwasher floods. Larger industrial events, we'd refer.