Plumbing

5 Things You Should do if You’re Suffering a Plumbing Emergency

Plumbing is one of the most important components in a house, but we often forget it until something happens. It’s easy to panic when water starts flowing out the drains or you have a serious leak. In some cases, there might be ways to deal with these issues, but there are some cases when only dealing with professionals will help. Either way, there is a set of procedures anyone should follow anytime they deal with plumbing emergencies to make sure that damage is kept to a minimum. Here are the steps that you should take if you’re dealing with any major plumbing issue.

Turn Off the Water Source

Doing this alone could stop a catastrophe and buy you more time to run a search for plumbers near me. There will often be things that you can do to block water from coming from the mainline. On a toilet, for instance, all it could take is turning off the valve being the commode or at the base. This could stop an overflowing toilet and avoid serious flooding. If the issue is more serious, however, you want to turn off your main valve immediately. It should be located somewhere in the basement or on the side of your building near the rest of the utilities.

Turn Your Water Heater Off

The next thing you want to do is turn your water heater off immediately. This is because water issues can often cause damage to it, so by shutting off the valve, you’ll be able to preserve it. Otherwise, heat could end up swelling up inside of it and cause overheating or bursting. Always make sure to turn the gas off first in the case of a gas heater.

Stop Small Leaks

You also have to find a way to stop the leaks that you can. If you have plumber’s tape, that’s great, but there are other ways that you can handle them. You could use rags and buckets to stop leaks and make sure that you take inventory of every one of them. You will then be able to relay that information to your plumber so that issues are treated in order of importance.

Open Spigots and Drains

Know that there will still be water left in your pipes even after you’ve cut the main valve, so open all outside spigots to let it out of your house. Make sure that you turn your garden hose on to let out any excess water. If you notice any drain clogging, try to unclog it using non-chemical solutions. Chemicals could actually cause more damage at this point and make matters worse.

Call Help

The next step is to call a professional and listen to what they have to say. Most will be able to give you instructions on the spot to reduce damage while they send someone your way. This could also let you know when a situation is too dangerous for you to stay there.

Conclusion

Plumbing issues can be tough to deal with, but you can limit the damage by taking the right steps. Make sure to follow these to the letter, and call a qualified professional as soon as possible.

More from the Author
Comments