Burst Pipes Causing Flood and Water Damage: The Facts

You can lose as much as 400 litres of water an hour if a pipe bursts in your home. To put that into perspective, your average bathtub can hold up to 200 litres, meaning that two full bathtubs of water will be entering your house every hour.

At ServiceMaster of Lethbridge, we work with you and your insurance company to provide emergency restoration and reconstruction services for all types of damage caused by water, sewer and flooding to your home. In Lethbridge and Southern Alberta, let us assist you with putting your home back together.

What Causes a Burst Pipe?

When water in a pipe freezes, it expands. This causes the pipe to crack and eventually leave a mess in your home. Our region is susceptible to drastically varying temperatures as a result of our Chinook winds. These sudden changes affect your plumbing and make your pipes more prone to bursting. There are, luckily, a few measures you can take to prevent your pipes from freezing:

  • Direct warm air to colder areas of your home: Pipes often freeze because they’re in non-insulated or non-heated areas of the house. Be sure to keep your pipes warm in the cold months of winter.
  • Seal the area around your pipes: Sometimes your plumbing is far colder than it has to be. Be sure that all leaks around your piping are sealed to avoid any unnecessary temperature strain.
  • Knowledge matters: Know where your water shut-off valves are and how to turn them off.

Need Help Cleaning Up? Let Our Certified Project Managers and Cleaning Technicians Assist:

  • Prevent any further damage. Secure the flooded area.
  • Determine the source of water. This may be obvious; however, a plumber may also be needed.
  • Determine the available resources. Is the power on or off due to electrical concerns? Is there available heat or has the heating equipment been damaged?
  • Determine the stage of damage. Has the source problem been fixed? Have your belongings been moved to dry areas? ServiceMaster staff can assist with this.
  • Determine the scope of the damage. Where is the water? It may not be just the one obvious ceiling, wall or floor. Moisture readings and thermal imaging photographs may be taken even behind the walls, above the ceiling or into the subfloor with ServiceMaster’s specialized equipment.
  • Get the water out. ServiceMaster has truck-mounted extraction units to remove the water quickly.
  • Get the equipment in. Industrial-strength fans and dehumidifiers are utilized by ServiceMaster technicians to begin drying things out for you before mould concerns set in. We have specialized equipment for sensitive areas, such as on hardwood flooring.
  • Contents handling. ServiceMaster will assist in removing and storing unaffected content, as well as documenting items that were damaged by the water for your insurance company.
  • Monitor the situation. ServiceMaster monitors the equipment to make certain that everything is dried properly, but also as quickly as possible.
  • Carpentry services. Wet drywall, flooring, cabinetry and trim will be professionally removed if required by our technicians.
  • Clean, sanitize, odour treat. We use professional cleaning solutions and our cleaning technicians are trained and certified on various applications, ensuring that your home is cleaned properly and kept safe for your family.
  • Rebuild work. ServiceMaster continues to work with you as your general contractor providing local sub-contract trades to completely re-construct and restore your home to its pre-damaged condition.

When faced with a flood caused by a burst pipe, call your local water damage and flood damage restoration and carpet-cleaning specialists in Lethbridge, and we’ll take care of everything for you. Give us a call today, or visit our testimonials page for comments from our previous clients.