We have already considered how to prevent Negative consequences and compensate for the damage when you are flooded by your upstairs neighbors.
Let's now consider the opposite situation: You are returning home, and there is a flood at home - the battery in the apartment has burst. What to do in similar situation, where to call and how to find the culprits, so as not to become a “debtor” of the neighbors below and not pay them new renovation in the apartment. Let's look at this situation in more detail here.
To begin with, let’s figure out what a heating system battery is in a residential building, and who is responsible for its serviceability and performance. According to the rules for maintaining common property in an apartment building (MKD), approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 491 of August 13, 2006. Common property includes the in-house heating system. Internal system MKD includes risers, heating elements (heating radiators), regulator valves, gate valves, ball valves, as well as a general house heat meter.
Proper operation of common property is ensured by organizations depending on the management option residential building. The Housing Code regulates the following methods of managing apartment buildings:
Thus, responsibility for the serviceability of heating radiators lies with the service organization with which an agreement has been concluded for the maintenance (management) of a residential building.
If even minor leaks are detected from heating pipes or radiators, you must urgently contact the service organization or submit a request for troubleshooting to the dispatch service. Even a minor fault can lead to flooding not only of your property, but also of the property of your neighbors below. And this is fraught with costs for repairing their apartment.
It is impossible to eliminate a radiator leak on your own, since this requires disconnecting and draining the entire riser. You should also not try to troubleshoot a Mayevsky tap (these are usually installed in rooms on the top floor to bleed air from the heating system) without a representative of a specialized organization.
A battery rupture can occur both in the summer (non-heating) period and in winter. After the end of the heating season, all heat supply systems are tested for strength and density. Pipeline tests are carried out by creating a pressure 1.25 more than the working one, but not less than 0.2 MPa.
IN winter period A radiator burst may be associated with water hammer. Water hammers occur when the resource supply organization’s coolant temperature is not gradually increased in conditions of a significant drop in outside air in a short period of time. At the same time, the network water increases in volume and does not have time to be drained from the system to expansion tanks, which provokes a rupture of pipelines, their connections and heating devices.
In the event of an instantaneous burst of a heating radiator (usually during pressure testing or water hammer), it takes a lot of time to eliminate the leak, and if the fault is not immediately detected, then not only the property in the apartment where the accident occurred, but also the neighbors below may suffer. As we have already found out, the service organization is responsible for the good condition of the radiators, so it must pay for the damage caused.
However, the management organization may refuse compensation for damage. Of course, in the future you can change the management company. But why bring it to this point if you can do everything competently right away? necessary actions, after which the service organization will not have the slightest reason to compensate the victims for damage.
Procedure for flooding an apartment from a battery:
Often companies responsible for the health of the heating system refuse to pay damages to owners or try to dispute the cost. In this case, there are several options for resolving the issue. If the damage is not significant and only repairs were affected, you can agree that the finish will be restored at their expense.
If you are not satisfied with the proposals of the guilty party, you must invite damage assessors from a company engaged in independent examination to draw up an opinion. With this document, you can go to court for reimbursement of the funds necessary to restore the damaged property. Without an expert opinion, the court will not take into account its own determined value, so this procedure is mandatory. The examination is paid for by the injured party, however, its cost must be indicated in the statement of claim, and if the decision is positive, the service organization is obliged to compensate you for it.
It is not always possible to claim compensation for damage from the service company, and even the court in some cases decides in favor of the defendant. It's about about unauthorized reconstruction of the premises (moving the battery, changing the number of sections, incorrect insertion into the heating riser), or about replacing the heating radiator with a device of a different type.
The house design provides for a specific heating system, indicating the materials and types of batteries used. Often, when renovating an apartment, property owners change heating devices to radiators of a different configuration, but no one thinks that this requires a project agreed upon with all relevant authorities. Thus, bimetallic heating devices are especially popular. Their compact appearance is especially attractive and looks more aesthetically pleasing than, for example, a cast iron radiator.
It's important to compare specifications modern batteries with the characteristics of those installed initially. Also, after replacing, moving or increasing the heating area of the heating device, it is necessary to carry out start-up tests, for which a report must be drawn up, in accordance with
Thus, if you are planning to change the internal heating system, be prepared for possible consequences and read the Rules technical operation thermal power plants, as well as SP 60.13330.2012 “Heating, ventilation and air conditioning”.
Still have questions? Do you want answers to them?
Here you can ask a question free of charge to the experts or lawyers of the gkh-konsultant.ru portal.
A breakdown of the water supply, heating and sewerage systems is an emergency, the culprit of which may be either the management company or the residents of the property. Before you begin to find out who is obliged to compensate for the damage caused and repair the breakdown, you need to take a number of specific actions to eliminate the flood. What to do if a pipe bursts in your apartment, where to go and what documents to fill out - we will consider further.
Since it is impossible to predict such an incident and prepare for it, many apartment owners are simply lost and do not take any action to eliminate the source of flooding.
What to do if a heating pipe in an apartment bursts? - everything is quite simple. Need to do the following recommendations specialists:
Attention! Don't sit back and wait for the experts to arrive. It is important to begin wiping up water from all surfaces and strive to protect the property from serious damage as soon as a broken pipe is identified.
Experts distinguish the following two types of breakthrough:
Running water in every apartment is no longer a luxury, and we take it for granted that this system must be in good working order. Yes, minor breakdowns occasionally occur - for example, the faucet starts to drip or the toilet flush starts to leak. But what if the problem takes on a larger scale - a pipe has seriously burst?
A water pipe break can happen not only on the street (where accidents, by the way, mostly happen underground, so only service workers can quickly detect it), but also directly in the house. In this case, the main thing is not to panic and take all necessary measures in a timely manner.
Pipe burst
Where should you call urgently if there is a burst in the house? water pipe?
When the water supply breakthrough is really large and it is impossible to carry out repairs on your own due to lack of time, skills and/or special materials, you can call representatives of plumbing services. Moreover, the choice of organization depends on the day of the week and time of day.
Work time weekday? Then you should call the ZhES (housing maintenance service). Its number should be in the information table at the entrance or on the website of the management organization.
Did the water supply break happen at night or on one of the weekends/holidays? It is necessary to call the emergency services (emergency service of the water utility unit assigned to the district).
It is best to find out the telephone numbers of housing and emergency services in advance and enter them in your phone book.
Information table at the entrance If at the time of the water supply accident there is aseveral people, it is recommended to immediately distribute responsibilities: one calls the plumbers, and the other at this time tries to eliminate the cause and consequences of the accident.
It is better to make a duplicate of the keys to the basement of the house in advance, so as not to waste your already precious time searching for them.
Now you need to seal the leak. To do this you will need the following tools:
It is advisable to always have several clamps at home. They are very inexpensive, but their use will help you save a lot of money.
The action plan is:
Sealing the pipe with rubber and clamps A replacement for these materials can be epoxy resin and an ordinary medical bandage (or other fabric). You just need to mix the resin as indicated on the package and soak the bandage in the mixture. After this, wrap the bandage around the leakage area with a wide overlap as much as possible. a large number turns and apply resin on top. Repeat several times.
You can also apply a special material called “cold welding” directly to the leak site. It can even be used in water - but you need to be extremely careful if it is hot water: getting a burn in this case is a matter of a couple of seconds.
This “ambulance” will help the pipe hold out until professional plumbers arrive. Although it happens that such temporary measures help not for a day or two, but for several months.
Expert opinion
Nikolay, utility employee:
“Not everyone has a supply of clamps at home. In principle, any tightening material is suitable for a temporary patch: you can use a clothesline, wire, or even a regular medical tourniquet. Some people use rags and tape. But in order for the adhesive tape to hold tightly, you need to thoroughly degrease the surface - for example, with gasoline or acetone. Stopped the leak? All that remains is to call and wait for the plumber to arrive.”
It is this question - who is to blame, who should thoroughly repair communications and compensate for possible damage from a leak - that arises acutely immediately after the accident is stopped.
In private cottages, all internal communications are clearly the sphere of interests and responsibility of the owner of the house. As for pipes on and off site, those responsible for their repair and maintenance are usually specified in an agreement with the owner of the networks (for example, a city water utility or a specialized private company).
Apartment flooding But what if a pipe burst in a city apartment?
There are two options:
If it happens that a water pipe breaks and floods your neighbors, you will need to establish the cost of the damage caused. There are several ways to do this:
In case you find mutual language with neighbors is not possible, the amount of damage can be determined in one of the following ways:
Crack in the pipe Expert advice
Vitaly, lawyer:
“Representatives of the operating organization must be called to draw up the report. They are required to appear. If they don’t go, you need to write a telegram in which the request form indicates where and when you need to come to draw up a report on the fact of a break in the water supply pipe (hot or cold). At the time of drawing up the act, you need to bring a couple of witnesses (representatives of the injured party can also act as such). The report should indicate the time and place of the accident, a description of the pipe and damage (ceiling paint has peeled off, the wallpaper in the area has been damaged for the same amount square meters and so on.). After replacing the pipe, the dismantled damaged section must be preserved. If your neighbors are flooded and you have to go to court, then this piece of pipe may be needed to establish the cause of the accident.”
You need to make sure that the photo/video contains the following information, if possible:
If you want to avoid wasting money, time and effort on eliminating the consequences of a water supply accident, the most effective thing is to prevent its occurrence. To do this, you need to promptly check the condition of the water supply pipes in the house.
Rust on the pipe What should you definitely pay close attention to?
The best way to prevent a serious accident is not to try to fix a small leak yourself by applying a tire or cold welding, but turn to professionals. Replacing pipes before they break is much more effective and profitable than after it.
An example of fixing a leak in a pipe:
A pipe burst in an apartment often becomes big problem for residents. What to do in such a situation? Who to call if a pipe bursts? Who will be at fault for the accident? These questions often worry citizens. Let's try to deal with everyone in turn.
What to do if a pipe bursts in your apartment? Experts recommend:
To turn off the tap, you need to install the handle across the pipe.
Depending on the strength of water flow into the living space, there are:
If your neighbors are flooded as a result of a leak, it is recommended to determine the degree of guilt and compensate for the damage caused without waiting for a court resolution of the issue. Otherwise, the amount payable will increase by the legal costs incurred by the injured party during the proceedings.
To fix a small pipe break yourself, you need:
The described actions will help eliminate the leak only for a short period of time. Immediately after the operation considered, you need to call specialists and fix the problem properly.
All available methods troubleshooting leaks at home are presented in the video.
If a pipe in the apartment has burst and water flows under strong pressure, then the method described above will be ineffective. In this situation it is necessary:
These actions will not help completely eliminate the problem, but will help reduce the intensity of flooding in the room. It is optimal if the tenant of the apartment in which the accident occurred knows who has the keys to the basement. In this case, you don’t have to waste time on self-removal leaks, and shut off the common building riser in the basement.
If your apartment is being drowned by neighbors from above, then the algorithm of actions should be as follows:
After the flooding has been stopped, you must contact the management company to obtain a flooding report (a sample pipe break report is shown in the figure below). The document is drawn up by a representative of the management company in the presence of a specially convened commission, the owner of the flooded residential premises and those responsible for the accident. The act states:
The document must be signed:
If the guilty party refuses to sign the act, then the corresponding note “refused to sign” must be made in the document. The act presented in this form will also have full legal force.
After receiving the act, you need to carry out independent examination, the result of which will be the expression of the damage received in monetary terms. The examination is carried out by qualified construction companies that have the appropriate certificate.
On next stage it is necessary to establish who is to blame for the accident. Guilt is determined on the basis of three main documents:
In accordance with the specified documents:
After identifying the culprit, you can submit a statement of claim to the court, to which you must attach:
Do not neglect the correct and timely preparation of all necessary documents, even if the neighbors agreed to pay for the damage in full. Due to any circumstances, the culprit may retract his words and then it will be almost impossible to establish guilt and prove the amount of damage caused.
Let's imagine a situation - you are returning home, and angry neighbors are standing near the apartment shouting: “You are flooding us!” You open the door and see that in one of the rooms there is, if not a fountain, then a rather strong stream. The water is ankle-deep, the situation is sad.
Let's figure out who is to blame for this, what to do now and “where to run.”
There are few of them, but each one determines the further investigation and the search for the culprit.
Poor state of communications, dilapidated house
Faulty condition of heating devices and shut-off valves
Incorrect connection of heating devices
Defects in equipment, pipes
Water hammer due to a sudden increase in pressure
It is also important to take into account the time of year when the breakthrough occurred.
If this is the heating season, then there may be several reasons for the breakthrough, it all depends on the specific case. The reason is determined based on the results of a commission inspection and examination.
If the accident occurred outside the heating season, then there are no options. The reason is incorrect hydraulic testing. Intra-house networks were not disconnected from the mains, and since the coolant is supplied under high pressure, pipes or radiators simply could not withstand the pressure. In 90% of cases this is human factor, and the blame falls on the management company or heating point.
1. Urgently report the breakthrough to the management company. And at the same time - to the city emergency service, especially if boiling water is gushing from the pipe. For this purpose, always keep the numbers of the Criminal Code and emergency services at hand.
2. Record everything on your phone’s camera - the location of the breakthrough, the actions of specialists, in general, everything that happens.
3. Do not stop the leak yourself and do not rush to eliminate the consequences. This is dangerous because... During the heating season, the water temperature in the pipes exceeds 55 °C. It was also not enough to get burns.
4. When the crew eliminates the accident, record the damage to property. You do this first yourself, and then call a commission from the management company, which must conduct an inspection of the property within 3 days and issue an inspection report. You have the right to invite independent experts (by paying for their services) to assess the damage. The expert assessment will serve as evidence of material claims against the culprit of the accident during the trial.
The most difficult stage comes - to determine who is responsible for the flooding.
According to Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 491 of August 13, 2006, the common intra-house property includes a heating system along with risers, radiators, control and shut-off valves, common house heat energy meters and other equipment on these networks.
That is, the management company servicing the house is responsible for the state of communications. By law, the management company is obliged to check the equipment twice a year and, at its own expense, fix problems and/or replace damaged radiators, pipes, etc.
What happens - the management company is always to blame for a flood? Is it the management company that will compensate for the damage to the apartment owner, as well as to the neighbors who suffered from a pipe break? Not so simple.
Firstly, to annually check the condition of communications, management specialists need access to the apartment, of which residents are notified in advance. If plumbers and mechanics were not allowed into the apartment, this fact (recorded) removes any responsibility from the management company and shifts it to the owner of the property.
Secondly, when pipes or radiators rupture, the important question is, have they been replaced? If the apartment has pipes and batteries from the developer, then the management company is responsible for the leak and compensates for the damage. If the residents changed the pipes and batteries on their own, without notifying or involving specialists from the management company, then the blame falls on the owner of the apartment. Therefore, when repairing and replacing communications, ideally you should contact your management company rather than a third-party organization.
When collaborating with an outside repair team, always enter into an agreement, keep receipts and warranties for equipment and materials. This way you can prove the guilt of third parties (workers or seller) if the cause of the accident is improper assembly and installation of the system or a defect.
A heating pipe rupture and everything that follows is a controversial case in legal practice. Each case is considered individually, and the decision is made under equal conditions in apartment buildings- can be rendered both in favor of the management company and in favor of the owner. It's hard to guess here. Controversies on the issue start from the top - in regulations and documents.
As we have already written, Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 491 dated August 13, 2006 classifies radiators installed in an apartment, as well as control and shut-off valves, as common property. The Housing Code of the Russian Federation speaks about this, in particular Article 36, clause 3, part 1. At the same time, there is a decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated September 22, 2009 (No. GKPI09-725), which excludes radiators with disconnecting devices in apartments from the common property of the house.
This is such a paradox. For a positive outcome of the case, contact lawyers with experience in handling cases in the housing and communal services sector.
Unfortunately, it is rarely possible to peacefully resolve the issue of who is to blame and how much damages will be paid. If the fault, based on the results of the examination, falls on the management company, it is obliged, within 30 days from the date of presentation of the demand, to compensate losses not only to the owner of the “emergency” apartment, but also to his injured neighbors. Otherwise, the owner files a claim in court indicating the amount of damage to him and his neighbors. Additionally, you can request compensation for legal expenses and moral damages.
To go to court you must have the following documents:
Inspection report for an apartment where flooding was recorded
Expert assessment damage caused
Photos and videos showing the location of the pipe break and the consequences
The more documents - acts, examinations, conclusions - you take with you, the easier it will be to prove the guilt of the Criminal Code or a third party.
If the owner is responsible for the flood, there is no need to bring the situation to court. You can and should reach an amicable agreement with your neighbors, out of court. You enter into a peace agreement on the voluntary repayment of the amount of material damage, which records the data (name, address, telephone numbers) of both parties, the date and time of the incident, and the amount of damages compensated. Couldn't you reach an agreement? Then there is only one way out - court. Based on the results of the meetings, the judge will make an objective decision on the amount and timing of payment.
Of course, no one is immune from force majeure, but you can still avoid unpleasant situations. Monitor the condition of your home, change communications in a timely manner, and inform specialists about malfunctions. In an effort to save on the simplest repairs, there is a high chance of spending ten times more. And not only money, but time and nerves.
To be confident in your home's pipes and avoid any adverse consequences, use modern pipe sealing materials! You can buy them directly on our website directly from the manufacturer at affordable prices.
