A broken water pipe can wreak havoc on your home. Here are two steps you should take if you ever find yourself in this situation.

Minimise the damage

As soon as you notice the pipe has burst open, you should take certain precautions to help minimise the amount of damage the water does to your home. Firstly, locate the water metre (this is usually located on the outside of a building) and switch off the valve to disconnect the water supply. This will prevent additional water from flooding and subsequently damaging your home.

After this, you should pick up any items in the area of the burst pipe which are likely to be destroyed by exposure to moisture; this might include things like metal objects (like jewellery, for example) which could corrode if they get soaked, as well electronic devices. Put these items on a high shelf where they will not get wet.

Then, grab as many dry towels as you can find to soak up the water (if you don't have enough towels for this process, you might want to use a few dry bed sheets as well). Wear a pair of rubber gloves when doing this, in case the water that is leaking from the pipe is contaminated.

If you have a dehumidifier, switch this on and allow it to run in the affected area for at least a few hours; this should help with the drying-out process.

Call an emergency plumber immediately

Because they need to be available 24 hours a day, emergency plumbers usually charge more for their services than standard plumbers. As such, if money is tight, you might feel tempted to wait for an appointment with a 'normal' plumber rather than incur the expense of one who specialises in plumbing emergencies.

However, this is a mistake which could end up costing you a lot of money in the long run. It's important to realise that, when a pipe breaks open, the damage often extends far beyond the area that is visibly accessible.

If you fail to have this damage repaired quickly, you run the risk of allowing more water to seep into the floor, walls and structural framework of your home. This could result in problems like damp, mould and timber rot, all of which are likely to cost you thousands of dollars to repair.

Given this, it is crucial to act fast and get in touch with a emergency plumbers from a company like P1 Plumbing & Electrical.