Water damage in Carrollton, TX: who to call and how to hire

The city's Utility Customer Service page lists an after-hours emergency number, 972-466-3425, for a sewer backup, a water main break, a leaking fire hydrant, low water pressure and after-hours service restoration. Normal office hours are Monday to Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and the city notes that an after-hours fee may apply for some calls outside those hours. The same page explains that meters are read once a month and that water is billed in units of 1,000 gallons, which matters if a hidden leak runs for weeks: a sudden jump on the bill is often the first sign.

Use that line for problems on the city side, such as water bubbling up in the street or sewage coming from a city main. A burst pipe inside the house, a failed water heater or a leaking supply line is on your side of the meter. For those, shut off your main valve first. Our emergency water damage page walks through the first steps.

U.S. Census Bureau data for 2024 (ACS table B25034 via Census Reporter) shows that about 27 percent of Carrollton homes were built before 1980, about 40 percent were built from 1980 to 1999, and about 33 percent were built in 2000 or later. Many houses are therefore several decades old, and supply lines, water heaters and toilet and washer connections are common leak points. Leaks from clean supply lines are what the restoration industry calls Category 1 losses, explained in our water categories guide.

Carrollton's Building Inspection department takes permit applications and inspection requests through the CityServe Portal, which also works on phones. Inspections are done once a day; inspection hours are 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on Friday. The office is at Carrollton City Hall, 1945 East Jackson Road. The department's page does not list which repairs need a permit, so ask before work starts. Drying equipment and removing wet carpet do not change the structure, but replacing a water heater, rerouting pipe or rebuilding walls may. Ask your contractor in writing whether a permit is needed and who will pull it.

Texas has no state license for drying out a house. Two related trades are licensed, though. Mold assessment and mold remediation are licensed by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. Its mold FAQ says the same company may not do both the assessment and the remediation on the same project, and only a licensed remediator can issue a Certificate of Mold Damage Remediation. Plumbing repairs need a plumber licensed by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners, which runs its own license search.

Before you hire anyone for mold work in Carrollton, search the person or company in the TDLR license search. For a plumber, the TSBPE consumer page says to get the name of the company's Responsible Master Plumber and check that the license number begins with "M".

• Ask what water category and damage class the company has assigned, and why. Category drives what has to be thrown out.
• Get a written scope that lists equipment, number of days, materials to be removed and the price method.
• Take your own photos and video before anything is removed. The Texas Department of Insurance says not to throw away damaged items until the adjuster has seen them.
• If mold is present, confirm the TDLR license number and ask who wrote the remediation protocol.

National price ranges and what drives them are in our restoration cost guide, and the claim process is in our insurance claim guide.

This site is an independent homeowner guide. We are not a contractor, we do not perform restoration work, and we do not answer phones. To reach a restoration company, call one of the companies listed on this page or see all listed companies. Questions about this guide: email us. We do not take service requests. Please still run the license and permit checks on this page yourself.