Sewage Backup Cleanup in Highland Park
Century-old clay and cast-iron laterals under rebuilt lots back up at the lowest drain in the house.
Highland Park, TX · 75205
Water Damage Restoration in Highland Park, TX
Phones answered 24/7 across Highland Park. Call for a clear price before any work starts.
- Phones answered 24/7
- Slab leaks, burst pipes, attic AC leaks
- Emergency price approved before work
- Moisture readings logged for your insurer
Get a fast quote
Fastest: call (833) 490-5225. Or send this and we call you back.
Highland Park, TX
Local service in Highland Park
water damage restoration in Highland Park
Highland Park is an independent town of 8,864 people surrounded by Dallas, and its water problems are often older than its houses: 1920s laterals and service lines under lots rebuilt since, plus Turtle Creek running through town. Dallas Water Damage Restoration answers 24/7 and sends out the next crew that comes free.
Highland Park is a town of its own, completely surrounded by the city of Dallas, with 8,864 residents in the 2020 census. Residents voted to incorporate on November 29, 1913 and incorporation was granted in 1915. With University Park next door it makes up the Park Cities, and it issues its own permits rather than working under Dallas's rules.
Turtle Creek runs through the town. The developer Henry Exall once dammed it to form Exall Lake, and Lakeside Drive follows the water; Armstrong Parkway, Preston Road and Mockingbird Lane carry most of the traffic. Highland Park Village, at Mockingbird Lane and Preston Road, opened in 1931 and is described as America's first self-contained shopping center.
The housing is largely 1920s through 1950s, with many houses rebuilt on their original lots. That is the detail that decides most of the work here: a house can be fifteen years old while the sewer lateral, the water service line and the trees standing over them are a century into service. The crew dries what the water reached; a Texas-licensed plumber works on the pipe itself.
- City
- Highland Park, TX
- County
- Dallas County
- ZIP codes
- 75205
- Hours
- Phones answered 24/7
Today in Highland Park
Rare hard freezes, spring hail, flash floods and long hot summers that run attic air conditioners all day decide which water problems are most likely in Dallas from week to week.
Why is the plumbing in Highland Park older than the house above it?
Because rebuilding replaces what is above ground. When a 1920s house comes down and a larger one goes up on the same lot, the parts of the system buried in the dirt frequently stay where they are: the sewer lateral running out to the main, the water service from the meter box, and the trees whose roots have grown around both.
Those older materials fail in known ways. A clay lateral opens at the joints as Blackland clay swells in a wet winter and shrinks in a dry August, and cast iron corrodes from the inside until a hub cracks. So a kitchen finished last year can back up at the lowest drain in the house, which is usually a tub or a shower pan rather than the fixture someone was using.
Treat a backup as Category 3 water: keep people and pets off the floor, stop water use everywhere in the house so nothing else drains toward it, and have a licensed plumber camera the line. Cleanup for a typical house is estimated at $2,500–$10,000 or more, and most Texas policies exclude sewer and drain backup unless a rider was added. Having a lateral scoped before a remodel costs far less than finding it afterwards.
Two houses on one street, two completely different water problems
Highland Park streets mix foundations. An original house from the 1920s or 1930s may stand on piers with a vented crawl space under the floor, while the rebuild beside it sits on a slab poured on clay. The same broken supply line behaves differently in each, so the first question a technician asks is which one you have.
In the pier-and-beam house the water goes down and out of sight, soaking joists, the subfloor and the underside of the oak boards, and the first sign is often a smell or a soft patch rather than a puddle. In the slab house the water spreads sideways across the finished floor and climbs the drywall from the bottom plate into cabinet bases and baseboards.
The prices follow the two paths. Crawl space water removal and drying is estimated at $1,000–$4,500 in 2026, and drying wet flooring, baseboards and cabinet bases after an under-slab leak at $1,200–$5,000, with the plumber's repair not included in either. The guide on pier-and-beam versus slab water damage sets the two side by side.
What does Turtle Creek mean for houses near the water?
It means surface water arrives before anything leaks. The creek passes through the middle of the town and Exall Lake sits behind the dam Henry Exall built on it, so lots along Lakeside Drive and the streets that fall toward the channel take runoff first when rain outruns the drains. Dallas-area houses almost never have a basement, so a yard that fills puts water at a door sill or across a garage slab instead.
The rain totals are the reason to take it seriously. On August 22, 2022 DFW Airport recorded 9.19 inches in 24 hours, the second-highest 24-hour total measured there after 9.57 inches on September 4 and 5, 1932, and Dallas Fire-Rescue handled nearly 200 vehicle emergencies in a day.
Creek and street water is grossly contaminated, Category 3 under the IICRC S500 standard, so soaked carpet and pad leave the house, wet drywall is cut back above the wet line at an estimated $3–$8 per linear foot of wall, and what stays is treated. Flood is excluded from a standard Texas homeowners policy; separate coverage through the National Flood Insurance Program generally takes 30 days to begin, so it is bought before a forecast rather than after one.
Does Highland Park issue its own permits?
Yes, and that catches people out. Highland Park is a municipality in its own right, so the drywall, flooring and framing that follow drying go through the town rather than the City of Dallas; confirm the details with the town before work is scheduled. ZIP 75205 is shared with University Park, which is also its own city, so the ZIP on your mail does not settle which town hall to call.
Age adds a second step. Houses built before 1978 fall under the EPA's lead Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, so cutting wet painted trim, old plaster or original millwork is a conversation to have with the contractor before anyone opens a wall. Texas has no statewide general-contractor license, which makes the local permit rules the ones that count.
The order of the first hour does not change, though. Close the main valve, usually at the street-side meter box on these older lots, stay clear of standing water near outlets and appliances, photograph each room before anything moves, and call your insurer so the claim opens with a record. Then call (833) 490-5225: the line is staffed around the clock, and a crew is assigned as soon as one comes free.
Popular here
Most requested services in Highland Park
Pier-and-Beam Crawl Space Water Damage in Highland Park
Original houses on piers hide water under the floor while joists and subfloor soak.
Slab Leak Water Damage in Highland Park
Rebuilt houses sit on slabs over clay that moves, and the lines beneath them cannot flex with it.
Flood Damage Cleanup in Highland Park
Lots along Lakeside Drive and the streets falling toward Turtle Creek take runoff first.
Structural Drying and Dehumidification in Highland Park
Oak floors, old plaster and masonry are dense-material drying and need days of monitoring.
Mold Inspection and Testing in Highland Park
Damp crawl spaces and old plaster walls hold moisture a meter finds before a stain appears.
Coverage
Where we work in Highland Park
Neighborhoods we cover
- Creek-side lots along Lakeside Drive and Turtle Creek
- Streets off Armstrong Parkway
- Blocks around Highland Park Village at Mockingbird Lane and Preston Road
- Houses between Preston Road and the Dallas city line
- Rebuilt lots standing between 1920s and 1930s originals
- Older pier-and-beam houses on the town's early streets
Landmarks and main roads
- Turtle Creek
- Exall Lake, formed when Henry Exall dammed Turtle Creek
- Highland Park Village, opened 1931
- Preston Road
- Mockingbird Lane
- Armstrong Parkway
- Lakeside Drive
Still stuck? We pick up 24/7.
If it's an emergency, call now. For non-urgent service in Highland Park, send the form and we'll call you back.
ZIP check
Confirm coverage for your Highland Park address
Highland Park ZIP codes we cover: 75205. Type yours to confirm, or just call.
Everything else
All services available in Highland Park
- Water Damage Restoration
- Emergency Water Removal
- Burst Pipe Water Damage
- Frozen Pipe Water Damage
- Slab Leak Water Damage
- Flood Damage Cleanup
- Sewage Backup Cleanup
- Mold Remediation
- Mold Inspection and Testing
- Structural Drying and Dehumidification
- Ceiling Water Damage
- AC Condensate Leak Water Damage
- Water Heater Leak Cleanup
- Appliance Leak Water Damage
- Storm Damage Restoration
- Roof Leak Water Damage
- Pier-and-Beam Crawl Space Water Damage
- Commercial Water Damage
- Apartment and Condo Water Damage
Nearby
Also serving areas near Highland Park
University Park
ZIP 75205, 75225
Lakewood & East Dallas (Dallas)
ZIP 75206, 75214, 75223, 75246
Uptown & Oak Lawn (Dallas)
ZIP 75204, 75219
Downtown & Deep Ellum (Dallas)
ZIP 75201, 75202, 75226
FAQ
Highland Park FAQs
Is Highland Park part of Dallas?
No. It is a separate town, completely surrounded by the city of Dallas but with its own government, in Dallas County about 6 km from downtown. Its mail uses ZIP 75205, which it shares with University Park. Permits for repair work after drying come from the town, so ask your contractor which ones apply.
Our house was rebuilt a few years ago. Can the sewer line really be from the 1920s?
It often is. Rebuilding replaces the structure, not necessarily the lateral buried between the house and the main, and clay or cast-iron pipe of that age cracks, sags and collects roots. A camera inspection by a licensed plumber answers it in half an hour, and it is worth doing before a backup rather than after.
The oak floor in the older part of the house is cupping. Can it be saved?
Sometimes. Cupping means the boards took moisture from underneath and the edges are standing higher than the middles, so reaching both faces early gives them a chance to flatten. Once they dry in that shape, sanding is the remaining option. A technician measures the subfloor and framing, not the surface.
Who handles mold if it turns up behind wet plaster?
In Texas that is licensed work through the TDLR. A licensed mold assessment consultant writes the remediation protocol and a separate licensed remediation contractor carries it out, since one company may not do both on the same project. At 25 contiguous square feet or more the licensing exemption no longer applies. Assessment is estimated at $300–$650.
Is there an extra charge for a call in the middle of the night?
An after-hours, weekend or holiday emergency fee is estimated at $100–$300, and it is explained along with the rest of the emergency-stage price before any equipment is set up. The emergency inspection and moisture assessment itself is estimated at Free–$200 and is often credited when the work goes ahead.