Frozen Pipe Burst Keep Clean Up Crews Busy

2/25/2016 (Permalink)

Sergio Daros of SERVPRO of Framingham pulls down a waterlogged ceiling in a Framingham home after a frozen water pipe burst.

Posted in the Metro West Daily News:

As temperatures in MetroWest plummeted to minus-12 degrees Sunday, business for David Kurzontkowski started heating up.

Kurzontkowski, owner of SERVPRO Framingham, said the extreme cold over the weekend caused sprinkler heads to pop and pipes to burst in homes and commercial buildings. Kurzontkowski, whose crews go in to clean up damage after emergencies, said his phone started ringing at 9 a.m. Sunday “and then it just hasn’t stopped since.”

“I’m just driving from burst pipe to burst pipe,” he said Monday.

And now, as it gets warmer, there’s still a high risk: He expects more water pipes that froze from the cold will burst as they start to thaw out.

“I think it’s going to get a little worse before it gets better,” Kurzontkowski said.

Plumbers, firefighters and cleanup crews across the region kept busy dealing with heat problems and burst pipes and don’t expect it to slow down for days.

Framingham Deputy Fire Chief Paul Gildea said his department responded to about a half dozen such calls Sunday, another half dozen during the day Monday and expected still more. One was at the MetroWest Daily News after a frozen sprinkler pipe burst, flooding the lobby and newsroom.

“It was a tough weekend,” Gildea said, noting that the Presidents Day holiday made it difficult for people to order parts to fix systems.

Andy Rodenhiser said his company, Rodenhiser Plumbing, Heating, Air Conditioning & Electric in Holliston, was giving out space heaters to customers it couldn’t get to just yet.

“We took about 700 calls over the course of the weekend and it starts off primarily as no heat and maybe some frozen pipes where cold water or hot water isn’t working in a particular fixture,” Rodenhiser said.

The timing during school vacation week was unfortunate, he said, because some people were gone.

“A lot of people make the mistake of turning down the heat,” he said. “Maybe they’re gone to Florida, or away.”

Rodenhiser said pipes expand when water freezes and the stress can cause them to burst. He recommends everyone be alert as pipes thaw and be ready to immediately shut off the water supply if they do burst.

“If something had been frozen you’ve got to watch for it and look for a split,” he said. “When it does suddenly thaw you want to be around so you can minimize damage.”

Kurzontkowski, who deals with the damage from burst pipes, has a rule of thumb:

“Keep your heat at 70, especially when you leave,” he said. “Don’t try to save money and turn your heat way down when you leave. Some people think put it to 60 and you’re OK.”

Other tips include opening up the cabinet doors in the kitchen and bathroom – wherever you have pipes – to hit them with warm air, and properly insulating a home to stop cold drafts from blowing in.