1. Shut off the water
Main stop valve, clockwise until it stops. At the street in a covered box, or on the exterior wall facing the street.
If the problem is one fixture, there is usually an isolation valve directly beneath it - closing that keeps water on elsewhere.
2. Kill power to anything the water can reach
If water is near outlets, appliances or a consumer unit, switch off the affected circuits at the breaker panel - but do not stand in water to reach it. If you cannot get there safely, leave and call an electrician or the utility.
3. Shut off the water heater
If the house supply is off, shut off the heater’s power or gas. A tank that keeps firing while draining will be damaged.
4. Open the taps
Open the lowest taps in the house to drain the standing water out of the system. It reduces what is left to escape from the break.
5. Photograph everything
Before you move anything or start clearing up. Wide shots and close shots, with the time visible if you can. This is what an insurance claim is built on.
6. Now call
And take the thirty seconds to check the licence - emergencies are exactly when unlicensed operators find work, because nobody checks under pressure. Ask for the RMP number, in the format M-12345, and check it here.
Ask for the call-out fee and the out-of-hours rate before they are dispatched.
Gas is different - leave
If you smell gas: do not touch switches, do not use a phone indoors, do not look for the source. Leave the building, then call the gas utility’s emergency line from outside. A plumber comes after the utility has made it safe.
Worth doing before anything goes wrong
- Find the main shut-off and check it actually turns
- Label it
- Note where the water heater’s isolation valve and gas cock are
- Keep a licensed plumber’s number somewhere other than a phone that may be in a flooded room
Common questions
Where is my main water shut-off?
In most Texas homes, at the street in a covered box near the pavement, or on an exterior wall on the side of the house facing the street. Find it now, while nothing is wrong, and make sure it turns.
Should I turn off the water heater too?
If you have shut off the water supply to the house, yes - shut off the power or gas to the water heater as well. Heating an empty or draining tank damages it.
Is a burst pipe covered by insurance?
Policies commonly cover sudden accidental damage but exclude damage from a problem you knew about and left. Document the time you found it and the time you reported it.