No water, and it is freezing?
Check whether the neighbors have water, then call the water utility, because the main and the curb stop are theirs. If it is your line, the question underneath it is how deep that line actually is.
If the whole street is out it is the main, and the water system deals with it. If it is only your house, call them anyway to rule out their side, open one cold tap a little, find your main shutoff before it thaws and starts leaking, and keep every flame away from the pipe. New Jersey requires 42 inches of cover on a water service, so a line that freezes is worth checking for depth.
What to do right now
Find out whether it is only your house
Ask a neighbor or two whether they have water. A whole street without water is the main, which belongs to the water system. Just your house points at your service line, and that is a different call.
Call the water utility before you call anybody else
The main in the street and the curb stop at the property line are theirs. The service line from the curb stop to the house is the property owner's. One phone call tells you which side of that line the problem is on.
Open one cold tap a little
Running water relieves pressure in the line. It will not thaw a buried line, so treat it as a short-term step while you sort out the rest.
If water is appearing, shut the main valve
A frozen pipe often does not leak until it thaws, and then it can leak all at once. Know where your main shutoff is before winter, not during it. If water is coming through a ceiling or near the panel, treat it as an electrical hazard and stay out of it.
Never thaw a pipe with a flame
A torch on a frozen pipe can start a fire. Interior pipe is the only part you should try to warm yourself. A buried line is not something you thaw yourself at all.
Why a service line freezes
The line is too shallow
New Jersey requires at least 42 inches of cover on a water service (N.J.A.C. 5:23-3.15), which puts it below the 36 inch frost line. A service set shallower than that is the one that can freeze.
Frost drove deeper than usual
Frost goes deeper the longer the cold lasts. A line that is only just below the frost line is the one a long cold spell can reach.
An unheated space in the path
Crawl spaces, an attached garage, a corner of a basement nobody heats. The part of the run inside the house can freeze even when the buried run is fine.
Something disturbed the ground
A recent dig, a new driveway, regrading that took soil off the top of the line. Cover that was adequate can stop being adequate without anyone noticing until the first hard freeze.
When it bursts
A frozen line often does not leak while it is frozen. The split shows up on the thaw, all at once, which is why the main shutoff matters more in a freeze than at any other time of year. Outside, a broken service can show up as a wet patch in only your lawn, which points at your own service line, or as a water bill that jumps.
Those are the same signs as a water service failing without a freeze, and the repair is the same work.
What it costs
- Water service replacement: $8,000 to $10,000 for a 200 foot service.
- What moves it: the length of the run, the material the town will accept, rock and wet ground, and whether the line has to get under a driveway or a mature tree.
Our own northern New Jersey pricing, stated 2026-09-18. Winter digging is not cheaper: frost slows the first foot or two, and a lawn opened in January looks opened until spring.
What customers say about this work
We have a busy restaurant in Stanhope, Shakey Jakes. We had a water main break that needed 50 ft of digging. They started at 2 am in freezing cold weather so as not to interfere with business. They did as they said and were very professional.
I had two recent emergencies and James and his team responded the same day. Immediate callbacks even though they were busy, and the pricing was very fair. And he volunteers as an EMT. Five star ++ rating for sure.
Common questions
What do I do if my water line is frozen?
First find out whether the neighbors have water. If the street is out, it is the main and the water system's problem. If it is only your house, call the water utility anyway, because the main and the curb stop at the property line are theirs, and that call tells you which side the problem is on. Open one cold tap slightly to relieve pressure, know where your main shutoff is in case it starts leaking when it thaws, and do not put a flame anywhere near a pipe. A buried service line is not something to thaw yourself.
Who is responsible for a frozen water service line in New Jersey?
The usual split is that the water system owns the main and the curb stop at the property line, and the property owner owns the service line from there to the house. Where exactly that line falls is set by your water system's own tariff and rules, and it does vary, so confirm it with them rather than with any general statement including this one. It is worth knowing before an emergency, because it decides who pays.
How deep should a water line be in New Jersey?
At least 42 inches of cover under New Jersey's rule (N.J.A.C. 5:23-3.15), which is deeper than the 36 inch frost line. A line that keeps freezing is worth checking for depth first, since a section shallower than 42 inches is the likely cause.
Can a frozen pipe be thawed instead of replaced?
Sometimes, and it is worth trying when the frozen section is inside the house. A buried line is different: thawing it restores water today and does nothing about why it froze. If the run is above frost depth, it will freeze again the next hard stretch, and a line that has already split will leak the moment it thaws. The honest question is not how to thaw it but how deep it actually is.
How much does it cost to replace a water service line in NJ?
With us, $8,000 to $10,000 for a 200 foot service, quoted against a stated distance on purpose, since a price with no length attached is not something you can compare. What moves it: how long the run is, the material going in and what the town will accept, how hard the digging is through rock or wet ground, and whether the line has to cross a driveway or a mature tree, which can turn an open cut into a bore.
Can you dig in frozen ground in the winter?
Yes. Frost slows the first foot or two and that costs time, so winter work is not cheaper, but a house without water is not a job that waits for spring. What matters more than the frost is restoration: a lawn opened in January is going to look opened until things grow again, and anybody telling you otherwise has not done it in February.
Three steps, no runaround
Call or send the form
Reach a real person at 862-268-2510, or tell us about the job online. Emergencies jump the line.
Free on-site estimate
We look at the ground, tell you straight what it needs, and give you a fair, upfront price.
We do the work
Markouts and permits handled. We dig, backfill, restore, and walk the finished job with you.
Serving northern & central New Jersey
Water off, or a line that freezes every winter?
We locate it, dig it, and put the new line in at proper depth so it stops happening. 24/7 for emergencies.