What happens when you call
We answer the phone, day or night. We ask for your address, where the water is coming from and whether it is still running. A plumber is sent and you get an arrival window. Our emergency arrival is 60–90 minutes.
On site, the first job is to get the water stopped. Then we open up as little as we need to reach the break, repair or replace the damaged pipe, and test it under pressure. Before any larger work, you get the cause, the choices and the cost.
How to tell a pipe has burst
- Water pouring or spraying from a wall, ceiling or under a sink.
- A ceiling that sags, drips or stains quickly.
- Water pooling on the floor with no clear source.
- A sudden drop in pressure at every tap.
- The sound of rushing water inside a wall or under the floor.
- Water running down the driveway or up from the yard.
Why pipes burst here
In colder places pipes freeze. In the East Bay the usual cause is age. Much of Hayward was built between 1940 and 1960, and galvanized steel water pipe from those years rusts from the inside until a section gives way. Copper develops pinholes and thin spots. Other common causes are water pressure that is too high, a failed fitting or flexible supply line, and a nail or screw through a pipe during other work.
On the few nights a year it does freeze, pipes in unheated garages, crawl spaces and outside walls can split, most often in the hills. The leak shows once the pipe thaws.
After the repair
A burst is a warning about the rest of the pipe. If the break came from old galvanized or worn copper, the same pipe elsewhere in the house is the same age. We tell you plainly whether this was a one-off or the first of several, and price a repipe next to the repair when it makes sense. If pressure was the cause, a new pressure regulator protects everything downstream.
We repair the plumbing. Drying out and rebuilding walls and floors is restoration work; if you need it, we can point you to people we trust through our Trusted Pro Network.
Where the pipe is
A break in a wall or ceiling is a pipe repair. A break under a slab floor is a slab leak. A break between the meter and the house is a water line repair. We handle all three.
Hayward and the East Bay
We are based in Hayward and take burst pipe calls in every Hayward ZIP code (94541, 94542, 94544, 94545) and across the East Bay. See emergency plumbing for our city pages.
About Friendly Services
Family-owned, with over 20 years in Hayward. License CSLB #1156315 (C-36 plumbing). $1M general liability cover and workers' comp. Five-year workmanship warranty on our own work. 100+ five-star reviews online. Se habla español.