For an immediate response to a burst pipe Point Cook, water main burst Werribee, leaky tap Werribee or any other urgent plumbing request please call us on 03 9931 0905.
Burst Pipes and Water Leaks
Burst Pipes are inconvenient and stressful and are almost always a huge shock to our clients. If you have a burst pipe or water leak in your home or garden, our team of plumbers can repair your pipe fast to minimize any damage to your home.
If you have a water leak or burst pipe in your home and can assess the damage without causing injury or harm to yourself (and cause too much damage to your property), try to quickly inspect where in the pipe the burst is coming from. Then turn off your water from your mains supply.
How do you turn your mains water supply off? Look for a lever/handle next to the water meter at the front of your home. Turn the lever so that it is 90 degrees to the meter (or clockwise as far as it can go).
What can cause water pipes to burst? Sometimes they can be cause by a lot of pressure built up due to a blockage somewhere down the pipeline. Foreign objects flushed down the toilet, oils and fats tipped down the sink, tree roots growing in the pipes can all cause blockages and thus pressure build ups in the pipeline.
Another cause of a burst pipe is someone digging in the wrong spot and hitting a pipe causing water to burst out. This often happens when landscapers or home gardeners dig without knowing where pipes are in the garden area.
In colder climates water can also freeze in the pipeline which can also cause that inconvenient build up of water pressure.
Water leaks can be caused by simply having ageing tapware or fittings that require repairs or replacement, or tapware not installed correctly or tight enough. Flexi hoses for example are common materials that require replacing often so they don’t burst.
What are flexi hoses?
A flexible hose, commonly known as a flexi hose, is a stainless-steel braided hose that encases a rubber pipe. They are extremely common and found in almost all suburban homes across West Melbourne. Flexi hoses will be installed beneath your kitchen sink, under your laundry sink, connecting your dishwasher, your fridge water supply, under your zip tap/water filter unit and connecting your toilet cistern.
Flexi hoses reduce the stress on pipes by withstanding vibration, contraction and expansion and are bendable and adaptable to areas. They are also cheap and simple for plumbers to use, reducing labour costs when installing plumbing fixtures.
They do, however, have a reputation as a nuisance plumbing fitting and are blamed for up to 22% of flooded homes in Australia.
What are the signs that my flexi hose may burst?
If any of your flexi hoses have braiding that is frayed, rusted, your hose is stretched too tightly, is kinked or you know you haven’t had them changed over in 10 years, that is a sign your flexi hose may burst. When a flexi hose bursts, the amount of escaped water can equal the volume of a family swimming pool!
Burst flexi hoses in single storey properties cause thousands of dollars in damages to flooring, however if a flexi hose bursts in a two-storey home, the escaped water can leave a devastating path of destruction; carpets, flooring, ceilings, appliances, furniture, art etc.
What can you do to prevent your home from flooding from a flexi valve?
There are 5 steps we advise that you take to ensure you reduce the chances of a flexi hose flooding your home:
- Get comprehensive home and contents insurance and check your PDS for escaped water coverage. Using a broker like Cornerstone Insurance Group can assist you in getting a thorough policy.
- If your flexis are over 5 years old, or are showing signs of wear, engage in a licensed plumber like McCarthy Plumbing Group to replace your flexi hoses.
- While your plumber is there, get them to add mini stops to all flexi hose waterlines as an added insurance policy if a flexi hose does burst; mini stops will allow you to isolate escaped water from a burst flexi hose at a toilet/basin etc without having to turn off your mains supply.
- You can also ask them to install a pressure reducing valve, also known as a pressure limiting valve, if you have an older home (all newer homes will have them installed as a standard). This valve will ensure your plumbing fixtures will not exceed a pressure of 500 kPa.
- Turn off your water at the mains when you go away on holidays. For instructions on how to turn your water of at the water meter have a read of this blog here.
Call our plumbing team on 03 9931 0905 immediately so we can resolve your water leak and burst pipe by repairing or replacing the broken pipe and ensuring this doesn’t happen again.
For an immediate response, please call us on 03 9931 0905. We can provide same day plumbing services all over Melbourne including Truganina, Tarneit, Laverton, Laverton North, Hoppers Crossing, Derrimut, Sunshine, Brooklyn, Williamstown, Altona, Altona Meadows, Seaholme, Point Cook, Werribee, Werribee South, and Wyndham Vale.
Do you have a burst pipe and want to know how to turn off your water at the mains? Have a read of our blog here.
Why choose McCarthy Plumbing Group? Have a read of our reviews here. To fix a burst pipe Point Cook residents can call us on 9931 0905.
