Winter water woes: are you covered for water damage?

Pipes can freeze and burst over the winter. If you’re leaving your home fore the holidays, the last thing you want to come home to is a flood in your basement.  No heat, no water, no rest for the weary.

One thing you can control is the maintenance of your home and the amount of insurance you have to prepare for catastrophic water events in your home.

Extended Water Coverage

Check your home insurance policy and see if you have extended water coverage.  If you do, you’ll be covered for some types of sewer backups.  These types of events usually happen during a major summer storm, so no problem this time of year.  But if something goes crazy in your neighbourhood or a frost heavy causes a line to break, a sewer back up could occur.  That includes damage from a septic system if you have one.

For future reference, you can help avoid a sewer back up in late spring and summer by maintaining the weeping tiles around your home and keeping your eavestrough clear and in good repair.  Make sure you talk to your insurance provider to see what kind of coverage you have or should have for water damage.

Flood Insurance

If you’ve watched the news in Southern Alberta over the last few years, you probably are already aware that this type of insurance isn’t available here or anywhere in Canada.  We’re talking about natural, made-by-nature floods, not those caused by breakage or backup.   Floods in the insurance industry, are defined as water entering the home overland (or from the sky) that gets in through foundation cracks, doorways and windows.  Your extended water coverage would take care of other flooding issues such as sump pump failure.

Coverage for mould?

So, your pipes burst while you’re away and there’s water in your basement.  If this happens this time of year, it’s usually not warm enough for mould to grow.  But if it does, damage from mould is not covered by insurance.  Mould is a danger in the home to those with breathing issues or allergies.  Controlling the moisture levels in your home is the only way to prevent mould.  It loves damp, wet areas in bathrooms, door frames, around windows and in the corners of your basement.  You need to hire an expert to remediate and remove mould.  And, you likely have to pay for it out of your own pocket.

Frozen pipes

So you’ve been away and you come home to frozen pipes.  They don’t burst when they’re frozen – they break as they’re thawing.  A burst pipe can mean 30 to 60 litres of water a minute might come gushing out, which equals tens of thousands of dollars in damage in minutes if you can't stop it.  You can prepare by knowing a few simple facts, such as:

• Where is the main shut off valve and do you know how to turn it off?
• Do you know if you have water pipes running along concrete basement walls?
• Are there any gaps you can seal to keep the cold out?
• Do you turn off the water leading to outside taps every fall? 

Before going on holidays over winter months, you can:

• Open the cupboard doors under your kitchen sink or bathroom vanity.
• Leave a small trickle of water running if you anticipate a freeze.
• Keep the heat turned up higher than 16 degrees C instead of down even if no one will be home.
• If you have hot water heat don’t turn off the water in advance.

If you do come home to burst pipes, do this:

• Turn off the main water value and open all the faucets
• Do not heat up pipes with an open flame
• Heat and patience is the key.  Do not use an electrical appliance directly on a leaking pipe to avoid electrocution.  An electric heat in the vicinity of the freeze up will do.
• When you think the pipe is clear of ice, have a friend of family member slowly turn on the main water line while you check the house to make sure no water is running.
• If you have a frozen pipe and you successfully unthaw it, take steps to insulate the pipe so it doesn’t happen again.  The pipe may have weakened due to the high pressure and you may not be so lucky if it happens again.