Pipe Bursting Season

2/1/2021 (Permalink)

If you have a pipe burst this season, call SERVPRO of Tarrytown/Elmsford immediately so we can make it "Like it never even happened."

Water pipes burst because the water inside them expands is it gets close to freezing, and this causes an increase in pressure inside the pipe. When the pressure gets too high for the pipe to contain, it ruptures. 

When water freezes, its molecules crystallize into an open hexagonal form, which takes up more space than when the molecules are in their liquid form — that is, the water molecules expand as they freeze.

As the ice expands, it pushes water toward the closed faucet. This causes an immense amount of water pressure to build between the ice blockage and the faucet — eventually, the pipe ruptures under the pressure, usually at a spot where there's little or no ice.

Pipes that are the most at risk of bursting are those located outside of building insulation, or those in unheated interior areas, including basements, attics and crawl spaces.

If you have a pipe burst this season, call SERVPRO of Tarrytown/Elmsford immediately so we can make it "Like it never even happened."