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Burst and frozen pipes
Burst and Frozen Pipe Water Extraction in Mesquite, TX
A pipe let go and the water’s still coming. Shut off the main first, then call. We pull the water out, find everywhere it went, and start drying on the first visit.
Short answer
Close the main shutoff, stay out of standing water if the power’s on, take photos, and call. We pull the standing water out first, then dry the walls, ceilings and floors until the moisture readings match the dry parts of your house. A sudden burst is usually covered by homeowners insurance, and your policy wording makes the final call.
A few hours
Extraction on most houses
3 to 5 days
Typical drying time
24 to 48 hours
When mold can start on wet materials
Usually yes
Coverage for a sudden burst
What do I do first when a pipe bursts?
Stop the water, then worry about everything else. If you called us right now, this is the order we’d walk you through.
- Close the main shutoff valve. In most Mesquite houses it’s where the water line comes in: the garage, a utility closet or an exterior wall. A lever handle turns a quarter turn until it sits across the pipe. A round wheel handle turns clockwise until it stops.
- Can’t find it, or it won’t budge? Call the City of Mesquite’s 24-hour water and sewer line at 972-288-7711 and ask for an emergency shut-off. Don’t fight a stuck valve with a pipe wrench. That’s how a bad day gets worse.
- Watch the electrical. If water is dripping near light fixtures or got into outlets, switch off those breakers only if the panel is dry and you don’t have to step in water to reach it. Otherwise stay out and tell us when you call.
- Photograph and film everything before you move it. The Texas Department of Insurance says to document damage before repairs and hold off on permanent repairs until your insurer has seen it.
- Get the valuables up. Rugs, electronics, papers, photos and wooden furniture off the wet floor.
- Call a plumber, and call us. Once the main is off the water stops, so we can start extracting while you wait for the plumber. The plumber fixes the pipe so you can turn the water back on.
Ceiling bulging or dripping? Stay out from under it. Wet drywall and insulation are heavy and can come down without warning. See ceiling water damage.
Why do pipes burst in Mesquite houses?
Mostly because North Texas houses are built for heat, not freezes. In a lot of slab-on-grade homes the supply lines run overhead through the attic and down exterior walls, which is exactly where a hard freeze gets to them first. Water expands when it freezes, and a pipe can split without leaking a drop while the ice is still holding it shut.
North Texas has had two good reminders in five years. Winter Storm Uri in February 2021 split pipes all over the region. Then in late January 2026, the National Weather Service recorded temperatures dropping from the 50s into the 20s within a few hours as Winter Storm Fern came through, with a few inches of snow and sleet on top.
Cold isn’t the only culprit. Older copper lines wear thin and pinhole, fittings fail, and water heater connections give out. Once the water’s on your floor, a freeze burst and a worn-out fitting look about the same, and both get the same treatment: stop it, extract it, dry it.
Why does the leak start after the thaw, not during the freeze?
The ice is plugging the split. When it warms up, the plug melts and the pipe starts running, sometimes while you’re at work and sometimes days after the cold is gone. Attic lines drain through the insulation and the ceiling on the way down, so the first sign is often a stain or a drip in a room nowhere near the break.
After a metro-wide freeze, plumbers and restoration crews across the Metroplex get slammed at once. Call as soon as you see water. And if somebody knocks on your door afterward wanting a signature today, slow down. A real company gives you a written estimate and lets you read it.
What does water extraction after a burst pipe involve?
Extraction is the first stage of a bigger job. We pull the water out, work out where the rest of it went, take out what can’t be saved, and dry the structure. This is the same process behind every emergency water extraction in Mesquite call we take, and how it plays out depends on where the water landed.
| Where the water went | What we do |
|---|---|
| Carpet and pad | Extract with weighted tools that press water out of the pad. With clean water, carpet can often be dried in place. The pad is judged case by case. |
| Walls and baseboards | Map moisture with meters and a thermal camera, pull baseboards and dry the wall cavities. Drywall comes out when it’s saturated or sagging. |
| Ceilings and attic | Remove wet insulation, cut out sagging drywall and dry the framing above. |
| Tile, laminate and vinyl plank over a slab | Extract with hard-surface wands, then dry the floor and slab. Nothing new goes down until readings say it’s dry. |
| Cabinets | Remove toe kicks and dry behind them before the particleboard swells. |
Will my carpet be ruined? Not always. If the water was clean and it’s out within a day or so, carpet can often be dried in place. The pad underneath is a different story. It soaks up water like a sponge and is often replaced.
How do you know it’s actually dry? We measure. Pin and pinless moisture meters and a thermal camera find the wet areas, and we compare the readings with unaffected material of the same type in your house. That’s the dry standard, and it’s why the equipment stays until the numbers match instead of until the floor feels dry. The full process is on how water extraction works.
Is a burst pipe covered by homeowners insurance in Texas?
Usually, yes. A pipe that suddenly bursts is a sudden and accidental release, and most Texas homeowners policies cover that. A few expect you to have taken reasonable care before a freeze, like keeping the heat on, so read your wording. A slow leak that ran for weeks gets treated differently.
Two things to know before you call anybody. You’ll owe your deductible, and Texas law doesn’t let any contractor waive it. And we’ll document everything for your adjuster but won’t negotiate your claim, because Texas law bars contractors from acting as your public adjuster. The details are in our Texas water damage insurance guide, and typical prices are in the cost guide.
How do I keep the next freeze from doing this?
- Find your main shutoff today and make sure everyone in the house knows where it is.
- Insulate exposed pipes in the attic, garage and exterior walls.
- When the National Weather Service Fort Worth office issues a freeze warning for Dallas County, let faucets on exterior walls drip and open the cabinet doors under your sinks.
- Keep the heat on, including in rooms you don’t use, and leave it on if you travel.
- Check ceilings and walls for stains for several days after a freeze, not just the first morning.
My pipe froze but didn’t burst. Now what?
Leave the faucet open and warm the pipe slowly with a hair dryer or warm towels, starting near the faucet end. Never use a torch or open flame. If you can’t reach the pipe, or you see any water, shut off the main and call a plumber.
Burst pipe questions, answered
How long does it take to dry a house after a burst pipe?
Extraction takes a few hours on most houses. Drying usually takes three to five days after that, and longer for concrete slabs, hardwood, plaster and cabinets. We go by moisture readings, not the calendar.
Will my ceiling collapse after a pipe bursts in the attic?
It can. Saturated drywall and wet insulation are heavy, and a ceiling that’s sagging, bulging or dripping hard is a risk. Stay out from under it, switch off power to that area only if you can do it safely, and call.
Who fixes the broken pipe, you or a plumber?
A licensed plumber repairs the pipe. We extract the water, find where it traveled and dry the structure. Both are needed, and once the main is shut off we can usually start extracting while you wait for the plumber.
Does homeowners insurance cover a burst pipe in Texas?
Usually, yes. A pipe that suddenly bursts is a sudden and accidental release, which most Texas homeowners policies cover. Some ask that you took reasonable care before a freeze, such as keeping the heat on, so read your wording. You’ll owe your deductible, and Texas law doesn’t let any contractor waive it.
Can I stay in my house while it dries?
With clean water, usually yes. Expect steady fan noise and a warmer house, because dehumidifiers put out heat. If the water was sewage, or came through a ceiling that’s sagging, stay out of those rooms until they’ve been checked.
How much does water extraction cost after a burst pipe?
Published 2026 guides put most Dallas-area mitigation jobs between about $1,300 and $5,800, depending on the water category, how much got wet and how many drying days it takes. You get a written estimate before any work starts. The cost guide breaks it down.
What if a pipe froze but hasn’t burst?
Leave the faucet open and warm the pipe slowly with a hair dryer or warm towels, starting near the faucet end. Never use a torch or open flame. If you can’t reach it, or you see any water, shut off the main and call a plumber.
Can clean water from a burst pipe become contaminated?
Yes. Water from a supply line starts out as Category 1, but it can worsen with time and temperature, especially in a warm house or once it has soaked into building materials. That’s one more reason to call as soon as you find it. We identify the category when we arrive, and how water extraction works explains all three.
Keep reading
Pipe burst? Shut off the water and call.
Tell us where the water came from and which rooms it reached. We will tell you what we are bringing and what happens next.
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3213 I-30, Suite 301, Mesquite, TX 75150 · (972) 555-0147 · Get directions