How to Tell if a Pipe Bursts in Your House Before Water Takes Its Toll

When you think of a burst pipe, you may imagine flooding and dramatic, obvious damage. However, the signs of a burst pipe can be subtle, and they may start to appear before serious damage sets in. Whether you suspect a plumbing issue or simply want to stay on top of home maintenance, use this guide to learn how to tell if a pipe has burst and address the problem accordingly.

10 Warning Signs of a Burst Pipe

Burst plumbing pipes are a nightmare scenario for any homeowner, so learning to know if a pipe burst is essential. Unchecked burst pipes can lead to soaked carpets, ruined drywall, mold growth, appliance damage, and too many nuisances to count.

Contacting a local plumbing repair specialist is a good way to fix the pipes, but the damage to your property already exists. Don’t lose hope. There are some simple ways to check out the integrity of your pipes before a leak evolves into its final form: a dangerous burst pipe.

Here are 10 signs of a burst pipe:

• Standing water 

• High water bills

• Unusual sounds or odors 

• Strange-colored water 

• Fluctuating water pressure

• Wet spots or water stains

• Mold 

• Bubbling paint, peeling wallpaper, or cracks in the wall 

• Dripping ceiling fixtures 

• Increase in indoor humidity

How to Tell if You Have a Burst Pipe

The following process only covers some of your plumbing system, as many pipes are hidden behind walls and rest underground. These steps take a more holistic approach to your system, as leaking or burst pipes create issues at numerous points throughout the home. In other words, this is a game of Whac-a-Mole.

Prepare by gathering common tools like a flashlight and screwdriver. Grab some paper and list every bathroom, kitchen, and basement water fixture in your home. Finally, get an accurate list of recent water bills to look for alarming patterns. Now, you’re ready to put on your detective cap and get to work.

1. Check the Water Bill

Collect water bills for the past several months. If you don’t have paper copies, pull up the last few months via the utility company’s website or dedicated app. You’re looking for sudden and unexplainable increases in usage. Burst pipes release a massive amount of water into your home or surrounding property, leading to higher-than-average bills. Spying a sudden jump in usage is a fairly significant clue that a pipe is damaged. 

2. Test the Water Pressure

As indicated on the water bill, spikes in usage often come with shifts in water pressure. If you have a burst pipe somewhere in the system, the water reaches the tap with less pressure than intended. Continue sleuthing by checking every single water fixture in your home, one by one, for signs of a burst pipe.

Remember that a home plumbing system is complex, and only some fixtures will be impacted by a burst pipe. Some may continue to work, while others will struggle. Turn on each fixture and let it run for a few minutes, analyzing the water pressure. Jot down the results of each test, as an emergency plumber near you can easily track the malfunctioning fixture to impacted pipes. 

3. Look for Water Spots

Another obvious sign of burst pipes is water spots on ceilings and walls. These spots are darker than the surrounding area, so break out a flashlight and go throughout the home, checking every ceiling and wall.

However, most homes have a watermark or two, and not all these spots indicate current issues with the pipes. A recently made watermark is cooler and squishier than the surrounding area. Throw on some protective gloves before touching off-colored squishy marks on your ceiling. If the watermarks seem recent, you likely have a burst pipe.

4. Use Your Ears

Water rushing through burst pipes is not exactly a quiet affair. Turn off every fixture in the home, including every shower and faucet, and start listening for anything out of the ordinary. Damaged pipes come with a telltale dripping noise.

Jot down where any sounds are coming from and what they sound like. A persistent drip indicates a leaking pipe, but water pipes making a noise like clanging may just be hot water making its way through the system. Tighten any loose fixtures to see if this alleviates any unwanted sounds.

5. Use Your Nose

Another simple way to find leaky and burst pipes is to use your nose. Burst pipes can cause a variety of smells in your home, none of which are pleasant. Mold or mildew growing on wet pipes or walls gives off a musty, earthy smell that's hard to miss.

Another problematic plumbing odor is the smell of rotten eggs, which indicates the presence of hydrogen sulfide, a naturally occurring gas that can make its way into your home when there's a sewage leak. Sewage in your water supply is a major health hazard a plumber should address immediately.

Walk throughout the home and use your nose to track down noticeable odors. Jot down the likely source of these odors, including damp areas and possibly damaged pipes.

6. Check for Mold

Whenever pipes burst, microorganisms thrive at the source of the leak. These organisms include mold spores, mildew spores, and other moisture-loving nasties. They thrive in damp, dark areas like the cabinets under your sink or the pipes behind your walls. If mold keeps returning after you clean it, it may be taking advantage of water from a burst pipe to grow.

Once firmly entrenched, the organisms replicate and release weird, funky, and foul odors that are hard to miss. They also tend to be a different color than the surfaces they grow on, making them easy to spot. Look out for any signs of mold growth in your home and call a plumber if you spot them. Fungi like mold take time to develop, so noticeable growth means your pipe has been damaged for a while.

7. Hunt for Puddles

Random puddles near plumbing fixtures are a telltale sign of a water leak or a burst pipe. Start your search with exposed pipes, underneath sinks, and in the basement. Move from there to the upper floors and corners of the bathrooms and kitchen.

Don’t ignore any puddles during this search, as even a small puddle in the basement tucked away from pipes could originate two floors up from the bathroom. Keep an eye out for signs of a hidden bathroom leak. Any unexplained water accumulation in the home likely indicates an issue with a pipe in your plumbing system.

8. Smell, Inspect, and Taste the Water

Finally, there’s the tap water itself. When pipes burst in the ground, dirt and other contaminants mix with the water, leading to rust. These rust particles impact your water supply in several ways. It gives the water a brownish tint and a slightly metallic taste and smell.

If the burst pipe is directly connected to the sewage system, you risk even more dangerous contamination. Water with a rotten egg odor can indicate leaking sewage. Use your senses, and if something feels off with the water, do not hesitate to contact a pro. After all, paying the cost to fix a leaking pipe can help you avoid even more costly structural damage to your home.

What Causes a Pipe to Burst?

Several issues can cause a pipe to burst. For example, freezing temperatures below 20 degrees Fahrenheit can cause pipes to burst, as do small leaks that worsen over time. Clogged drains can lead to burst pipes when left unchecked, so you’re at a higher risk if you regularly send foreign materials like food, hair, soap scum, and bathroom products down the drain. Pipes also degrade over time, leading to leaks and bursts.

Some other common causes of a burst pipe include: 

• Aging pipes 

• Corrosion 

• Clogged pipe

• Pipe movement or shifts 

• Increased water pressure 

If It’s Not a Burst Pipe, What Could It Be?

While the 10 signs above can indicate a burst pipe, the problem isn't always that severe. If you notice any signs of a burst pipe on a smaller scale, you may have one or more of these other potential issues.

1. Broken Seals 

Plumbers install a watertight seal around all plumbing connections and some appliance parts, such as dishwasher doors. These seals break down as they age, and you may notice puddles in areas where seals have broken.

2. Clogged Lines

Clogs in pipes, gutters, and HVAC systems can build up enough over time to cause these systems to overflow or break. When they fail, you may start to notice leaks.

3. Corrosion

Unless your home has PEX pipes, aging plumbing can rust or corrode enough to form a hole through which water can escape.

4. Damaged Pipe Joints

The curved connections between pipes are often the most vulnerable parts of a plumbing system. Extreme temperatures and water pressure can be hard on these joints over time. If you hear banging or ticking sounds when you run your hot water, you may have joint issues.

5. Frozen Pipes

When the temperature drops rapidly, pipes in your home may freeze. This can cause water pressure to drop, and leaving pipes unattended can lead to a burst pipe. Be prepared to winterize your plumbing each year to prevent frozen pipes.

6. Loose Connections

Hoses and pipes may move as water flows through them, causing them to loosen over time. Loose connections between pipes can leak, forming puddles around appliances.

DIY Pipe Inspections vs. Hiring a Pro

The whole point of these DIY inspections is to present a qualified plumber with actionable data. Hiring a plumber costs about $45 to $200 per hour, so performing the above steps can help cut down on labor costs by reducing inspection time.

Have all the information you collected ready to present to your plumber so they can quickly rule out other potential issues and get to the root of the problem. The cost to repair a burst pipe ranges between $200 for small areas of the pipe and up to $5,000 for installing new pipes underground or repairing water damage.