Burst Pipe or Major Leak? Do This First

A burst pipe is one of the few plumbing situations where every minute of delay adds water damage cost. In Tampa’s slab-built homes with aging pipe materials, active leaks can come from several sources. Here are the five we respond to most often, ranked by frequency on Hillsborough County emergency calls.

1. Slab leak from corroded copper supply line. This is the most common serious pipe failure we see in Tampa. Copper supply lines cast into or under concrete slabs from the 1960s through the early 1990s are now 30 to 60 years old. Tampa’s hard, slightly acidic municipal water causes pinhole corrosion from the outside of the pipe inward. When a pinhole grows large enough, water under line pressure jets into the ground under the slab or up through the slab joint. You may hear water running constantly with everything off, feel a warm spot on your tile floor, or notice a soft wet area in the carpet before any visible sign appears.
2. Polybutylene supply line failure. Homes built between 1978 and 1995 in Brandon, Carrollwood, and Town ‘n’ Country often still have gray polybutylene pipe, a recalled material that reacts with chlorine in municipal water and develops internal cracks over time. PB can fail suddenly at fittings or along the run, producing a significant leak inside a wall or under the slab with little warning. If you have a home from this era and have never repiped, a leak from PB is a credible possibility.
3. Washing machine or appliance supply line burst. Braided stainless or rubber supply hoses that connect your washing machine to the wall valves have a typical service life of five to seven years. When they fail, they fail completely, releasing the full flow of a 3/4-inch supply line into your laundry room. This is one of the fastest ways to flood a home. The same risk applies to refrigerator ice maker lines, which are often small plastic tubing that can crack at connection points.
4. Wall or ceiling leak from failed fitting or joint. Solder joints on copper pipe and compression fittings on older supply lines can fail from corrosion, movement, or a sudden pressure spike. Wall leaks often show up first as a stain or soft spot on drywall, or as water running down inside a wall cavity during or after someone uses a fixture on the other side.
5. Burst pipe from a Tampa hard freeze. On the rare nights when Hillsborough County temperatures drop into the upper 20s, unprotected outdoor hose bibs, attic pipe runs, and exterior wall supply sections can freeze and split. The burst often does not become apparent until the pipe thaws the next morning and water pressure returns. See our frozen pipes page for prevention details specific to Tampa.

The repair cost depends heavily on where the pipe is, how it failed, and how long the leak ran before it was found. Here are real 2026 Tampa numbers:

• Supply line or fixture stop valve replacement: $279. Braided supply lines to toilets, sinks, and appliances are inexpensive to replace. We recommend replacing all of them during a service visit since labor is the same trip.
• Accessible wall or ceiling pipe repair: $295 to $695 depending on pipe material, fitting type, and how much drywall access is needed. Does not include drywall patching, which is a separate trade.
• Slab leak detection: a basic leak search is FREE with our diagnosis; acoustic and electronic thermal imaging to pinpoint the exact location without exploratory cutting is an in-depth search, quoted in writing first.
• Slab leak spot repair: Quoted case by case at the confirmed break point, after FREE leak detection. Requires concrete saw, excavation, pipe repair, and patching.
• Slab leak reroute (preferred for older copper): Quoted case by case after FREE leak detection. New supply line run through the attic or interior walls bypasses the slab entirely. Better long-term solution when the rest of the slab copper is also aging.
• Whole-home repipe to PEX (polybutylene or old copper): $4,500 to $12,500 depending on home size and access. Eliminates the underlying material as a future liability. PEX is flexible, chlorine-resistant, and warrantied for 25 years. We restore water service each evening during multi-day jobs.
• Emergency same-day service: We respond throughout Hillsborough County seven days a week for active leaks and burst pipes. FREE diagnosis, written pricing before any repair begins.

Do not wait on an active leak. Call us now for same-day emergency response. Licensed CFC1431159. Call (813) 343-2212.

• January and February (post-freeze window): Tampa gets a hard freeze only in the colder winters. Pipes that freeze overnight often do not burst until morning when water pressure returns and the ice thaws. The 24 to 48 hours after a hard freeze is when burst calls spike across Hillsborough County.
• June through September (hurricane and storm season): Power surges from storm restoration can spike municipal pressure above 100 psi momentarily, blowing weak fittings and solder joints. Post-storm sump outages increase hydrostatic pressure against slab-embedded lines. If you find a new leak in the days after a major storm, pressure surge is a likely cause.
• March through May (wet season onset): Rising water tables from sustained spring rains increase hydrostatic pressure against slab pipes. Slow slab leaks that ran silently all winter often become visible leaks in March and April as the table rises.
• Year-round (aging pipe inventory): Tampa’s housing stock is heavily concentrated in the 1960 to 1990 construction era when galvanized and copper slab plumbing was standard. These systems have no seasonal pattern. A pinhole in 60-year-old copper can open any day of the year.

• Annual water pressure test (any season): Screw a $15 gauge onto an outdoor hose bib. Static pressure above 80 psi means your pressure reducing valve (PRV) needs calibration or replacement. Tampa municipal pressure regularly exceeds 90 psi at the meter, and an unchecked PRV accelerates fitting wear throughout the home.
• Before each cold snap (October through February): Disconnect garden hoses from all outdoor bibs. Cover hose bibs with foam insulating caps. Leave cabinet doors under exterior-wall sinks open on nights forecast below 32 degrees to let warm air reach supply lines.
• Every 5 years for pre-1985 homes: Have galvanized or original copper supply lines inspected for interior corrosion. Both materials corrode from the inside out. Diminished water pressure at fixtures, increased sediment in aerators, and persistent rust-tinted water are the early signs.
• After any foundation, remodel, or major landscaping work: Ground shifting from nearby excavation can stress slab-embedded joints even when the work itself was unrelated to plumbing. A pressure test after significant ground disturbance catches developing problems before they become emergencies.
• For polybutylene homes (gray plastic pipe, 1978 to 1996 construction): Inspect all accessible PB fittings every 3 years. Chloramine in Tampa’s municipal water accelerates PB degradation. Once one fitting has failed, the entire system is at elevated risk.