Broken Water Main: What’s Next?

3/17/2021 (Permalink)

This street in Methuen flooded back in 2019 as a result of a broken water main.

As a homeowner, you’re used to having access to clean water when you want to take a drink, brush your teeth, boil water to cook, or use the bathroom. There may be times when you turn on the water tap to find that the water is brown or doesn’t turn on at all. In those cases, though, it’s more than likely that the town is flushing the main water pipes in your area, and they’ll be back to clear water in less than a day.

However, there is another reason why your water might be brown: a broken water main. If a water main breaks, that results in a change in water pressure in the pipes, causing sediment and rust that’s inside city or town water lines to flow through. 

What does a water main break mean? That term describes when a water line breaks that delivers water underground to homes. The signs of a water main break include brown water, low pressure (remember that “Seinfeld” episode about the low pressure shower head?), or water or sewage seeping into your basement or lower level of your home. That’s just inside your home.

Other signs that a water main has broken can include water bubbling up from the street, water flowing down streets or yards without an obvious source (like someone hosing down their car), and a sinkhole. 

Once the water main break has been fixed, you still have tasks to complete:

• Turn on your cold water faucets and let them run for two minutes after they turn clear
• Turn on your hot water faucets and wait until the water gets hot
• Turn off the hot water and then after an hour or two, turn them back on to fully flush the hot water lines
• Run your washing machine (and dishwasher if you have one) twice without anything in it, including any detergent, and then a third time with detergent
• Look for any water damage in your basement as a result of the water seeping in

If the damage to your home requires the help of an expert, contact our Massachusetts water damage team here at SERVPRO of Haverhill / Newburyport. We can perform an assessment of your water damage along with a plan for water damage remediation.