How to Fix a Broken Water Line in an Attic

Shut off the main water line to your home. The main valve usually is between the water meter and your home. Turn the valve handle clockwise to shut off the water flow. Turn off the circuit breaker to the water heater. This prevents burning out the elements if the water empties from the tank.

Open up a faucet nearest to the area of the water leak in the attic. This relieves pressure inside the water line and empties the line. If the water line is a hot water line, turn on the hot water handle of the faucet. Wait until water stops flowing from the faucet. Leave the faucet on to allow pressure to escape when soldering the pipe together.

Place a bucket under the broken water line in the attic. Adjust a pipe cutter wheel over the pipe 6 inches away from one side of the break or split. Once the pipe cutter is tight, rotate the cutter around the pipe several times until it cuts through the pipe. Repeat the process 6 inches on the opposite side of the break or seam.

Flip up the triangular reaming tool on the side of the pipe cutter and insert it into each pipe end. Rotate the reaming tool around the inside of the pipe end to remove any burrs from cutting. Clean the ends of the cut pipe with emery cloth until the copper is shiny. Clean up to 3 inches of each end.

Measure between the ends of the pipe with a tape measure. Cut a piece of copper pipe to the measurement with the pipe cutter. Clean the ends of the pipe the same as you did the two cut ends of the house pipe. This is your splice pipe.

Clean the inside of two copper coupling fittings with a fitting brush or small wire brush. Measure the length of the coupling and divide the measurement in half. Make a mark on each house pipe end to the measurement.

Slide one coupling over a house pipe end until the end of the coupling is on the mark. Slide the other coupling over the end of the splice pipe and insert the opposite end of the pipe into the installed coupling. Slide the coupling on the splice pipe onto the house pipe up to the mark. This is dry fitting to ensure the splice pipe is the correct length. Remove the splice pipe and coupling from the house pipes.

Open the can of flux that comes with the soldering kit, and brush flux over each end of the pipes where they fit into the couplings. Brush flux inside the ends of each coupling. Fit the couplings and splice pipe in between the two ends of house pipe just as you did to dry fit the pieces.

Light the handheld propane torch and adjust the flame until there is a blue cone in the middle of the flame. Heat the joints between the coupler and the pipe, moving back and forth across the joint with the flame.

Hold the end of the solder against the joint, opposite the torch flame. Wait for the solder to melt and flow into the joint. The solder should fill the joint all the way around the pipe. Repeat for all joints between the coupler and pipe.

Allow the pipe joints to cool for 20 minutes. Turn on the main water valve to the house and check the pipe for leaks. The pipe will make a gurgling sound as it expels air through the open faucet. Once the faucet is running an even flow of water, turn off the faucet and turn on the water heater.