How to tell a pipe is frozen
The American Red Cross says that if you turn on a faucet and only a trickle comes out, suspect a frozen pipe. Look first at pipes along exterior walls and where the water service enters through the foundation. If one pipe is frozen, others may be too, so check every faucet.
The Red Cross lists the pipes that freeze most often:
- Pipes exposed to severe cold, like outdoor hose bibs, swimming pool supply lines and sprinkler lines.
- Supply pipes in unheated spaces: basements, crawl spaces, attics, garages and kitchen cabinets.
- Pipes on exterior walls with little or no insulation.
Why it matters: water expands as it freezes. The Red Cross notes that this expansion puts tremendous pressure on whatever holds it, metal or plastic, and can break the pipe. A frozen pipe has not necessarily split yet. Treat it as one that might have.
How to thaw frozen pipes safely
Thaw a frozen pipe with gentle electric heat or hot towels, never an open flame. The Red Cross lists a heating pad, a hair dryer, a space heater kept away from anything flammable, or towels soaked in hot water. Keep the faucet open and keep heating until full pressure returns.
- Know where your shutoff is first. The Texas Department of Insurance advises turning off the water at the shutoff valve if your pipes freeze, so a cracked pipe can't leak into the house once it thaws. How to find and close your shutoff.
- Open the faucet. The Red Cross says to keep the faucet open. As the ice melts, water starts moving through the frozen section, and the flow helps melt the rest.
- Apply gentle heat to the frozen section. An electric heating pad wrapped around the pipe, an electric hair dryer, a portable space heater kept away from flammable materials, or towels soaked in hot water (Red Cross). Denver Water adds that slower is better, because pipes warmed too fast may break.
- Keep going until full pressure is back. Then check the other faucets in the house. One frozen pipe often means more.
- Call a licensed plumber if you can't reach it. The Red Cross says to call a licensed plumber if you can't find the frozen area, can't get to it, or can't thaw it.
Burst pipe: what to do the moment it happens
Shut off the main water first, then deal with electricity, then document and start extraction. The Insurance Information Institute puts it simply: if your pipes burst, first turn off the water. Every minute the supply stays open, more water reaches the walls, floors and ceilings below.
- Close the main shutoff. Denver Water says that in most single-family homes the valve is in the basement or crawl space, on a wall facing the street. Shutoff locations and valve types.
- Stay clear of wet electrical equipment. Ready.gov warns not to touch electrical equipment if it is wet or if you are standing in water, and to turn off the electricity to prevent shock if it is safe to do so. If you can't reach the panel without standing in water, don't.
- Photograph before you clean. The split pipe, the water on the floor, the ceiling or wall where it came through, and the contents in place. A slow video walk through every affected room works too.
- Start extraction. Standing water and wet materials need to come out and the structure needs drying equipment. A certified restoration company does this and keeps the moisture readings that become your drying record. Find a certified company.
- Get a plumber and report the claim. The plumber repairs the line and writes up what failed. The Insurance Information Institute says to call your insurance professional as soon as possible.
Why burst pipe water damage spreads into walls and ceilings
Burst pipe water damage is rarely limited to the spot you can see. The pipes most likely to freeze run inside exterior walls, attics, crawl spaces and cabinets, so the water starts inside the building's cavities. From there it runs down framing, soaks insulation and wicks into drywall, flooring and ceilings below.
- Gravity carries it down. A burst in an attic or an upstairs wall shows up as a stain or sag in the ceiling of the room below.
- Insulation holds it. Wet insulation inside a wall stays wet long after the surface looks dry.
- Drywall and wood wick it. Water climbs and spreads through porous materials, past the edge of the visible stain.
- Flooring traps it. Carpet pad, subfloor and the space under cabinets and hardwood hold water out of sight.
This is why a moisture map matters more than a visual check. A restoration company's meter readings show where the water went, room by room, and the daily readings show when each area was dry. Those readings are also the record the adjuster reviews. What drying and repairs usually involve.
Documenting a frozen pipe insurance claim
A frozen pipe insurance claim file should answer two questions: what failed and what the conditions were. Answer both with records made at the time. Keep the split section of pipe, photograph everything before cleanup, and save the plumber's written description of the failure along with the restoration company's drying records.
| Record | What it shows | How to keep it |
|---|---|---|
| The split section of pipe | The physical failure | Ask the plumber to hand it to you; bag it and label it with the date and location |
| Location photos | Where the pipe ran and what was around it | Wide shot of the wall, attic or crawl space, then close-ups of the break |
| Temperature context | The cold snap and the conditions in the house | Note the date, the thermostat setting, and save a weather record or news alert for that night |
| The plumber's invoice | What failed and why | Ask for a description of the failure, such as a split copper line in an exterior wall, not just "repaired leak" |
| Photos before cleanup | The extent of the water | Every wet room, the ceiling below, contents in place |
| Drying records | What was wet, and for how long | The restoration company's moisture map and daily readings |
| Heat and maintenance records | That heat was on or the system was drained | Utility bills, a smart thermostat history, receipts for pipe insulation or winterizing |
Keep receipts for emergency costs too: the plumber, fans, a hotel if you had to leave. The full claim sequence is in the water damage insurance claim guide.
How the claim side works for frozen pipes
For freezing losses, policies often look at whether reasonable care was taken to keep the heat on or to shut off and drain the water, especially when a home was vacant or unoccupied. How your policy treats it is a question for your carrier or agent. Your part is the record of heat and maintenance.
The Texas Department of Insurance describes property policies that may include provisions about freezing tied to whether the policyholder "took reasonable care to maintain heat or shut off the water supply and drain pipes." It also says that whether a policyholder took reasonable actions rests on "the unique circumstances of the claim." That is why the records in the table above matter.
- Report the loss and get a claim number. Have the date, the source and the restoration company's contact ready.
- Describe the conditions plainly. Where you were, what the thermostat was set to, whether the house was occupied, and what you did when you found it.
- Send the records rather than retelling them: the pipe photos, the plumber's invoice, the drying log, the heat records.
- Ask questions in writing. If you're unsure how your policy handles freezing or a vacant home, ask your carrier or agent and keep the answer.
- Compare the estimate to the restoration company's when it arrives. When the adjuster's number is short.
Preventing frozen pipes in vacant or cold homes
Keep the heat on, keep warm air moving around the pipes, and drain or shut off the water if the house will sit empty. The Red Cross, the Insurance Information Institute and the Texas Department of Insurance each give specific steps. Write down what you did and when, because that record is useful later.
| Source | What it recommends |
|---|---|
| American Red Cross | If you go away in cold weather, leave the heat on, set no lower than 55° F. Keep the thermostat the same day and night during cold snaps. |
| Insurance Information Institute | Keep the house heated to at least 65 degrees, because the air inside the walls where pipes run is colder than the room. For an extended absence, have a professional drain the water system. |
| Texas Department of Insurance | If you leave before a freeze, turn off the water at the shutoff valve and leave your heat on. |
| Denver Water | Insulate pipes along exterior walls and in unheated basements. |
The heat settings differ by source. Your carrier, your utility or a plumber can tell you what fits your house and policy.
- Open cabinet doors under kitchen and bathroom sinks so warm air reaches the plumbing (Red Cross). Move cleaning products out of children's reach.
- Let cold water drip from faucets served by exposed pipes in very cold weather. The Red Cross says even a trickle helps prevent freezing.
- Close garage doors if supply lines run through the garage.
- Drain outdoor lines. Remove hoses, close the inside valve to each hose bib, and open the outside bib so it can drain (Red Cross).
- Have someone check the house. The Insurance Information Institute suggests asking a neighbor to check regularly while you're away, since quick action could mean far less damage.
- Keep the proof. Thermostat history, utility bills, winterizing receipts and the dates someone checked the house.
For contractors
Freeze losses often run through several rooms and floors, and the drying log carries the file. Get the plumber's description of the failure and the first moisture map into the file early. restoration.claims writes the independent estimate from your photos, moisture map and drying logs, and supplements the items an adjuster leaves out.
Questions people ask
What should I do first if a frozen pipe bursts?
Shut off the main water supply. The Insurance Information Institute says to turn off the water first when pipes burst. Then stay away from wet electrical equipment, photograph the damage, and call a restoration company and a plumber.
Can I use a torch or propane heater to thaw a pipe?
No. The American Red Cross says not to use a blowtorch, kerosene or propane heater, charcoal stove, or any open flame device. It lists an electric heating pad, a hair dryer, a space heater kept away from flammable materials, or hot towels instead.
Should I keep the broken pipe?
Yes, keep the split section and ask the plumber to describe the failure on the invoice. Label it with the date and where it came from. The adjuster may want to see it.
Does it matter that the house was empty when the pipe froze?
It can. Policies often look at whether reasonable care was taken to keep the heat on or to drain the system in a vacant home. How yours treats it is a question for your carrier or agent, and your heat and maintenance records are what you can bring to that conversation.
Why is there water damage in a room far from the break?
Water from a burst pipe runs inside wall cavities, along framing and through ceilings before it shows. A restoration company's moisture readings show where it actually went. That moisture map is also part of the claim record.