It takes a long time to recover from a hurricane.
If your home has been flooded, you may not discover hidden plumbing damage until a licensed plumber conducts a thorough inspection.
When floodwater recedes, dirt and silt are left behind as a residue. Floodwater could clog any drains in your home. DIY tools such as a plunger or a plumbing snake can often clear these clogs. But if you’re worried about damage down the pipe and are planning on a professional plumbing inspection anyway, you may want to leave these drains as-is until your plumber gives you the all-clear. Floating or flying debris, structural failure, or wind damage will likely require the replacement of plumbing fixtures. But those that are undamaged will still need some TLC in the form of a thorough cleaning with diluted bleach. For faucets and shower heads, you may need to disassemble them and soak the parts in bleach to prevent mold growth. Your home’s pipes are at risk from flying debris from a hurricane as well as floating debris from a flood. Until floodwater recedes and is completely removed from a home, you may not even notice that a pipe is cracked or broken. While you wait for your plumbing inspection, shut off the water at the main valve if you notice new puddles after the floodwater has receded. All that standing water and the saturated soil beneath create a crushing weight. Unfortunately, buried water and waste lines may fail under this load. One or more of these lines may have collapsed under your lawn if sinkholes appear after the water recedes. A plumber may need to conduct a camera inspection to confirm. Shifting foundations can cause pipes to break. Floods can cause foundation damage if the saturated soil beneath the foundation moves. Plumbing pipes are just one type of building material that may be damaged as a result of this unsteady ground. Foundation repair must be completed before certain pipes can be replaced.