My Geyser Just Burst ?
Plumbing Burst Geysers: What to do when your geyser bursts ?
This will normally happen at 3am in the morning, on a public holiday or over a long weekend. Such is life
First thing to do is to SWITCH OFF WATER SUPPLY. It is very important to know where your shut off valve is. A few pictures of shut off valves are shown:
These shut off valves are normally by the kitchen outside wall or if you have a water meter it should be just before or after the water meter. Failing that there could be a shut off valve either on another wall- take a walk along the outside wall of the house to check for one- or right on the inlet to the geyser.
{If you can get to the geyser this will be the best option as it still leaves you with cold water to the rest of the house}.
Once water has been switched off, SWITCH ELECTRICAL POWER TO THE GEYSER OFF. This is normally on your electrical board the one with all the switches on it. it should also be marked quite clearly GEYSER. If in doubt as to which switch is the geyser, you can safely assume ALL MCBs of 15AMP and over must be switched off. If in doubt still then just switch off the main supply.
NB!!!! If its 3am in the morning and you’re thinking of this option, make sure you have a torch handy and that it works as tripping the main switch will leave you in complete darkness in a flooding house.
Once water and electricity have been switched off OPEN UP ALL HOT TAPS- bath basin shower kitchen- This will drain out a bit of the hot water from the geyser but its main purpose is to release the pressure in the geyser cylinder thereby making it leak less. If you have switched off the main water supply to the whole house- cold water taps are also off- then you can also OPEN UP ALL COLD TAPS, preferably the bath or shower as sometimes this will drain all the hot water from the geyser instead of it leaking onto your ceiling. [YES SOMETIMES HOT WATER DRAINS FROM THE GEYSER VIA THE COLD WATER TAPS WHEN THE WATER MAINS ARE OFF}
Now you have done as much as you possibly can to avoid any further damage.
WELL DONE!!! I would probably hire you as an apprentice At this point it would be advisable to now call in a professional plumber who can asses what exactly is/was leaking. Just because water is coming from the ceiling or vicinity of the geyser, it doesn’t always mean it’s the actual geyser that has burst. It could be a few other things burst pipe, leaking vacuum breaker, overflowing TP valve, etc etc If you are a DIY kind of person you might be able to asses what is leaking yourself by using our GEYSER PROBLEMS PAGE. INSURANCE- IF YOU ARE INSURED UNDER THE BODY-CORP, HOMELOAN OR PRIVATELY- As the homeowner you have 2 options;
1. Call your plumber and let them fix it and send invoice to your insurance company.
2. Call the insurance hotline and report it to them and they will send their own service provider.
If you have phoned your insurance company they will give you 2 options-
1. They will pay you out an amount LESS YOUR EXCESS OF COURSE and you can call your own plumber to replace the geyser
2. They will send their own plumbers to replace the geyser.
REMEMBER YOU ARE THEIR CUSTOMER, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO DECIDE WHO WORKS IN YOUR PRIVATE HOME. SAFETY IS PARAMOUNT THESE DAYS AS WELL AS HONESTY RELIABILITY AND BEING ON-TIME. Either option you chose it would be advisable to let your insurance know what is happening as they will be paying most of the bill at the end of the job. You also might have to report subsequent damage to them i.e carpets wet, wooden floors damaged, cupboards etc etc.
All insurances will have a limit on the price they are prepared to pay to replace the geyser. This is put in place for obvious reasons as some plumbers greatly overcharge especially to un-suspecting homeowners. However if the geyser needs to be replaced on a weekend public holiday or after hours, it will probably cost a bit more than the insurance limit. THIS IS A FAIR POLICY FOR BOTH US- plumbing companies in general- AND THE INSURANCE COMPANIES.
ROUGH PRICE GUIDE FOR A 150 LITER GEYSER R6000.00 inc vat Homeowner will pay an EXCESS ranging from R500.00 to R2500.00 depending on your insurance company. The balance of the bill will be paid by your insurance company. If geyser is done out of normal office hours then expect to pay an extra R900.00 or so.
Quentin’s Plumbing and Maintenance are an honest reliable on time plumbing company. We are specialists when it comes to burst geysers. We believe we offer a service second to none and we would greatly appreciate being of service to you. Our prices are in line with the insurance industry and as if we haven’t said it enough we are HONEST, RELIABLE and ON-TIME.
So when the inevitable happens and water starts to rain upon you in your own house, give us a call and we will sort out the problem.
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