Arlington homes after a freeze, a hailstorm or a leak

Where we stand

Back in North Texas, starting with an honest record

We did a lot of work across Dallas–Fort Worth in earlier years, and we are reopening there now. Our current job records do not yet show an Arlington job, so this page has no Arlington photos and tells no Arlington job stories.

What it does have is what we learned reading up on this city before writing a word: when its houses were built, what the February 2021 freeze did, the rules the city applies to a new roof, and how it treats a damaged house in the floodplain. Each fact links to the agency that published it, so you can check it yourself.

The work itself is the same full list we offer everywhere: water mitigation, mold remediation, fire and smoke cleanup, air duct cleaning, the rebuild once the damage is handled, and construction and remodeling. One company, one phone number, from the first wet floor to the finished rebuild.

The houses

Arlington is mostly a 1980s city, and that shapes the repair

The Census Bureau puts the median Arlington home in 1986. More of the city's homes went up in the 1980s than in any other decade: 40,487 of 153,137 housing units.

Those figures come from the American Community Survey for 2020–2024 (year structure built, table B25034; median year built, table B25035, margin of error one year). About a third of the homes, 51,195, were built before 1980, and about a quarter in 2000 or later. That spread matters on a repair: what we open up in a house from the 1960s is not what we find in one from the 2000s, so we look before we price.

Cold snaps

What the February 2021 freeze taught Arlington about pipes

At DFW Airport, the official station for the area, the temperature stayed at or below freezing for 139 straight hours, from noon on February 13 to noon on February 19, 2021. It bottomed out at −2 °F on February 16.

That record comes from the National Weather Service office for the region, which also logged 5 inches of snow at the airport during the February 14–17 storm. A pipe that freezes in an outside wall or an attic can split without anyone noticing until it thaws and the water starts to run.

1. Before the next hard freeze

   Arlington Water Utilities asks residents to let hot and cold water drip slowly from inside faucets, open the cabinet doors under sinks, take garden hoses off outside faucets and turn off irrigation (city freeze tips, January 2026). Frozen pipes should thaw on their own with warmer air, never with a hair dryer or other heat.

2. When a pipe bursts

   The city encourages homeowners who can to shut their water off at the curb, and its water utility can send a field crew to do it until a plumber arrives (Ask Arlington, February 2022).

3. Then our part

   The pipe itself is repaired by a licensed plumber. We take out the standing water, open what has to come out, dry the house to the readings and rebuild it. Details are on water damage mitigation, and the rebuild on rebuild after damage.

Hail and wind

A new roof after hail: what Arlington's building office asks for

In Arlington, replacing roof covering needs a building permit unless the area replaced is 10 percent or less of the roof. The permit has to be issued and posted at the house before work starts.

That is from the city's re-roof technical bulletin (Planning and Development Services, September 2023), which answers the questions its inspectors hear most. A few of its points are worth knowing before a storm, not after:

The National Weather Service logs hail and wind reports for Tarrant County in NOAA's Storm Events Database, which is useful when you need the date of the storm that hit your street. Our roof, siding and gutter repairs after storms and hail are documented for the claim like the rest of our damage work; see storm damage repair.

Under the slab

Clay that swells when wet and cracks when dry

Much of North Texas is built on clay that changes size with the weather. The USDA describes Houston Black clay, a soil of the Texas Blackland Prairies, as having high shrink-swell potential, with cracks up to 4 inches wide opening when it dries out.

That description is in the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service's official soil series record. Not every Arlington lot sits on that soil, and you can see the mapped soil and its shrink-swell rating for your own lot in the free Web Soil Survey.

Why it matters to us: when soil under a slab moves, the plumbing inside the slab moves with it. Slab leaks are one of the water problems we handle: we find the wet area with meters, open only what has to come out and dry it, and foundation repair for clay-soil movement is part of what we do.

Floodplain

Arlington's floodplain line: 25 percent of market value

An older Arlington house that was legally built before the flood maps showed it in the floodplain can stay as it is. It has to be brought up to today's floodplain rules once it is substantially damaged or improved, which the city sets at 25 percent of its market value.

That comes from the city's homeowner's guide to floodplain maps, which says crossing that line typically means raising or moving the house. A big water repair can reach that share faster than people expect, so it is worth asking the city's floodplain staff early.

The same guide says flood insurance is available to all owners and renters, and that lenders must require it when a mortgaged home sits in the special flood hazard area. Look up your address in FEMA's Flood Map Service Center. Our repair estimate is line by line, in the industry's standard estimating format, so the cost of putting the house back is clear.

Permits

Which repairs need a city permit in Arlington

The city's own guide is short and plain: cosmetic work such as repairing or replacing flooring, wallpaper or paint needs no permit, while changes to the framework of a house do.

• No permit

  New flooring and paint after the house is dry, by the city's do-I-need-a-permit guide of December 2024.

• Permit

  Kitchen and bath remodels, removing walls, garage conversions and other changes to the framework. Windows and exterior doors need a permit and a worksheet.

• Who handles it

  Permits come from Planning and Development Services, which keeps its permit information at arlingtonpermits.com. On remodels we handle the permits and the plans, and design is included.

Mold in Texas

Mold after a leak: two separate companies, by Texas law

In Texas, the company that tests for mold and the company that removes it cannot be the same on one project. On any project we remediate, an independent licensed mold assessor does the assessment.

That separation comes from Texas Occupations Code 1958.155, and we never assess and remediate the same Texas project. After the removal, everything the mold touched is replaced with new material, never cleaned and reused. The steps are on mold remediation.

Paying for it

Insurance, the deductible and the first quote

For a covered repair you pay only your deductible, and your insurer pays us the rest directly. Upgrades you choose are priced separately.

We are the repair contractor, never the adjuster. We document the damage with photos, moisture readings and measurements, send our itemized estimate to your adjuster and answer questions about our scope; the claim itself stays between you and your insurer. More on working with insurance. The first consultation and quote are free, our work carries a written warranty with its terms in your contract, and financing is available through our lending partner.

Asked in Arlington

Questions people in Arlington ask