Question: My appliance hose broke while I was gone and I came home to a flooded kitchen. What do I do first?

kitchen flooded water damage repair

What should I do if my kitchen flooded?

Answer: The first thing you need to do is shut off the water to your house.

You can find your shut off valve outside near the curb in a concrete or metal box marked “WATER.” If you can find your water meter, you’re well on your way to cutting off the water supply. Now, using pliers or a screwdriver, open the box up. Inside you will see two pipes with levers/valves on them. The one that leads into your home is the house valve. The other is the main water supply. Turn off the one on the street side to cut off the water.

What You Should Do

After you've turned off the water source, you need to call a restoration company to get an estimate of how bad the damage is. It's important to get a professional to look at the damage as soon as possible because you need to completely dry the area within a couple days or you risk serious long term damage that is very costly to repair or replace. This is especially true if cabinets, drywall or hardwood floors are involved.

Water damage is insidious; water seeps into flooring, subflooring and places you can't see. You need experts with moisture meters to assess how extensive the damage is and to help you determine how to properly dry the affected areas.

Learn More

Learn more about water damage.