My basement pipe burst at 2am and I had to fix it myself

Honestly, last Tuesday around 2 in the morning I heard this weird hissing sound coming from the basement. Turns out a joint on the copper line under the sink had cracked and water was spraying everywhere. I shut the main valve off real quick but the floor already had about an inch of water. Since it was the middle of the night I couldn't call a plumber so I grabbed some PVC pipe and a coupling I had in the garage. I cut out the bad section with a hacksaw and used a heat gun to sweat a new fitting on, but my soldering was so sloppy it leaked again. Took me three tries before I got a clean seal and finally the water stopped. Anyone else ever have to fix a busted pipe in the middle of the night with no help?

2 comments

2 Comments

amy_sanchez7d agoProlific Poster

There's a reason plumbers charge extra for late night calls. They've done this a hundred times and own the right tools. You spent half the night and ruined some pipe trying to save a couple hundred bucks. That sounds like a win for the plumber, not you.

nancy8247d ago

Amy I feel your pain on this one. I tried fixing a leaky faucet last summer and ended up stripping the valve so bad I had to call a guy out at midnight anyway. Paid double what the original quote would have been, plus the cost of a new valve. Sometimes it is just better to let the pros handle it from the start.