About how much would it cost to fix a burst pipe?

Question

I know that it depends on the job. But I have absolutely no clue how much jobs like this cost.

In one of the shower/tubs in the house, there is a problem. When it runs for a while, it floods the house. I'm guessing a burst pipe. I don't have much money, but I now have to sleep in a room, where there is mold in the furniture, and possibly in the carpet/walls.

I just would like to know an approximate estimate, so that maybe I could save up, or just forget the whole thing.

Answer 1

I agree that you have a problem, that needs to be addressed immediately. Contact your insurance agent, and let them know. If you don't have insurance, get a Sheetrock saw, and open up the wall behind the tub, and observe the piping for leaks. If you can locate where the leak is, you can call a plumber, and he doesn't spend all the time trying to locate the leak, and just fix the pipe, or fitting that is leaking. From past experience, I would be suspect of loose or cracked tiles, allowing water from your shower to penetrate into the wall. Grout lines are deceiving, and can look good, but in reality be allowing a steady stream of water to infiltrate your wall. Another culprit, is the faucet itself is leaking from the stem, and the water is following the faucet, right back into the wall. If your shower head arm is loose in the wall, water will leak in the wall, only when you have the shower running. If you check all these, I assure you one of them will be the culprit. Good luck!

Answer 2

You have to do some detective work. This takes time & if you find the problem & have to call a plumber this will save time for the plumber.

First just pour some water in to the tub with the stopper in place. Wait for a while & check to see if there was a leak.
If ther is a leak then it is from around the drain in the tub.

If no leak then let the water out & check for a leak.
If it leaks then it is a drain leak. If this is on the first floor & the basement ceiling is open it isn't hard to find the leak.
And while the pipes don't always come apart easy you could try to fix it at this point.

On the second floor do you see signs of water damage on the ceilings or walls? If you do you should make a hole in the ceiling under where the head end of the tub is. When the water is running you may well see where it is coming from.

It could be from the tub over flow. When you fill the tub & let the water run a lot of water goes down the over flow & it's not unusual for it to leak in this area. It's not easy all the time to fix this leak but if you don't take baths you needn't worry for now.

Then run some water from only the hot side in to the tub.

Then run some water from the cold side only.

This would show if the faucet is leaking. If you can open the wall on the back side to look at the pipes at this level it would be easier.

Then set it for the shower & run the water. If you get leaking now it could be from the line that goes to the shower head or from the spout.

One very common area for a leak is just outside of the tub when the shower curtain isn't place right. You would see water on the floor.

Check the wall area inside the shower area. Dose it look tight?

Run through the tests & you may find the leak.

If you don't find it then you should open up the wall behind or the ceiling below.

If it floods like you say it dose then you sure should be able to locate just where it is coming from.

Again the most expensive part of getting this fixed could well be in locating the leak

Also you could have more than 1 leak.

Best of luck.

Answer 3

the drain for that tub is more than likely clogged down the line. there should be an acces panel behind the tub drain. get back there and run water. you'll see it coming out. its probably a washer, or you may need a whole new waste & overflow. if its an older house you may have a drum trap, and the water may be coming out of the cover.. i've seen people tile over drum trap covers(not good) call a plumber to run a cable and diagnose the flooding problem. shouldn't be no more than$500 at the most.HOPE THAT HELPS.....IT SHOULD...I AM A PLUMBER. GOOD LUCK!

Answer 4

sounds like your drain,or the water line that goes to the shower head is leaking not your main water lines the come from the water heater or from your water meter. In the wall behind the tub there should be a inspection door, if there is remove the door and look in under your tub and locate the water leak. When you do locate the water leak you can see if it is something you can fix or if you do need help,either way you will know ,and you will know what to tell someone what you have found wrong with your tub and ask about how to fix it. Good Luck

Answer 5

If your lucky it could be as little as $100.00, But I'd plan on a lot more maybe $3-4,000.00. Thats the type of problem you really don't know about until you start to fix it. Do you have to tear down a wall to get at the leak? Is there more than one leak? If your serious about buying this house, make it a condition of sale. XXXamought of dollars minus the cost to fix this problem, as well as the cosmetics that go with it.

Answer 6

About $3,000. The plumber will tear up the tile or shower area and fix the plumbing. Then you will have to hire someone else to fix the shower area again. Only way to save is to find someone who can do both jobs at a discount. Be sure you find someone who knows what they are doing. Otherwise, they might give you a temporary solution that will eventually need fixing again.

Answer 7

Hard to say, not knowing what is leaking exactly. Most likely 4-500. It all depends on the amount of work. It could be something simple or something that requires you to bust up walls to get at.

do get it fixed now. You could work out some kind of payment with the plumber. Putting it off will only make it worse, and if it totally fails, you may be swamped with water. good luck with it.

Answer 8

bummer, are u handy, can u trace for leak, that's most inexpensive.
Otherwise those estimates can be up there.
Use a diluted bleach solution, (wear gloves) to try and kill the mold. Good Luck

Answer 9

competent plumber $45-85/hour.
competent handyman $20-45$/hour.
materials and labor approximately equal. If your labor is $500. materials will be $500.
I ball park that $750-$1000.

Answer 10

It is probably a drain pipe or a trap. The biggest cost will be fixing the drywall.