What To Do When a Pipe Bursts: A Step-by-Step Guide

1. Turn off the water at the meter

Your water meter is usually at the front boundary of the property, near the front fence — sometimes in a small in-ground pit. Turn the tap or lever valve clockwise until it stops. This shuts off water to the whole property and stops the flooding at its source.

If you only remember one thing from this article, make it this: go and find your water meter today, while nothing is wrong. Fumbling around the front yard in the dark during a flood is the hard way to learn where it is.

2. Drain the remaining water

Once the mains are off, open the cold taps at your sinks and outside taps. This drains what's left in the pipes and takes the pressure off the burst, slowing the leak to a trickle much faster.

3. Switch off electricity if water is near it

If water is coming through a ceiling, running near power points or pooling around appliances, switch off the affected circuits at the switchboard — or the mains if you're not sure which circuit. Water and electricity are a genuinely dangerous combination; don't take chances.

4. Move what you can, contain what you can't

Get rugs, furniture and anything valuable out of the wet area. Towels and buckets are about containment now — the priority is stopping water spreading into other rooms or soaking into wall cavities.

5. Call a plumber

With the water off, the emergency is contained — but you're also without water until the pipe is repaired, so it still needs prompt attention. Describe what happened, where the pipe is, and what kind of pipe it looks like if you can see it. Photos help.

Why do pipes burst?

• Flexi hoses under sinks and vanities failing with age — one of the most common causes of home flooding in Australia
• Old galvanised steel pipes corroding from the inside out
• Copper pipes wearing thin at joints or rubbing on brackets
• Tree roots cracking underground water services
• Sudden pressure spikes in the street mains

Can you prevent the next one?

Mostly, yes. Replace flexi hoses every 5–10 years (they're cheap), have ageing galvanised pipework assessed before it fails, and if your home's water pressure is very high, ask about a pressure limiting valve — high pressure accelerates wear on every fitting in the house.