Before a plumbing emergency happens, it’s good to know the plumbing emergency steps such as where the main water shut off valve is located. The main shut off valve is usually located near the water heater. The valve will shut off the flow of water to the entire house or apartment. Always remember the old plumber’s adage: right to tighten, left to loosen.Valves may be hard to turn off. They are generally in the open position and have been in this position for a long time which means that they may be “frozen” or “stuck” in position. In this case, a little muscle power will get them to turn.If this valve is not “tagged”, tag it as the main water shutoff to make things easier later on down the road. Test this to find out if it is the main shutoff valve by closing it, and then try running the water in the kitchen sink. If the water stops running after a few seconds, then this is the main shutoff valve. Now that the water supply is shut off, the leak will stop as soon as the water pressure dissipates. The next thing to do is cut off any secondary valves near the leak.

Normally a water leak comes from under the sink, either in the kitchen or bathroom. If it is in the kitchen, look under the sink. There will be two valves under the sink. One is for hot water, and the other for cold water, shut them off. Next open the faucets in the sink to drain the water. There are similar shutoff valves under every sink in the house.

There is also a shut off valve under each toilet. This line sends water to the toilet tank. If your toilet tank is constantly “running” or filling and never stops, turn the supply of water off by turning this valve. If the toilet is overflowing onto the bathroom floor because of a blockage, lift the tank top and lift up on the float arm in older toilets or the lever in newer toilets.

Now that the water flow has stopped, call Tai Irwin Plumbing at 02 9451-1863 for the timely help. We proudly serve the North Shore & Northern Beaches area and will help you with any plumbing issue that comes up!