If you’re a homeowner, sooner or later you’re going to have a plumbing emergency. You know, where the faucet valve breaks and the water won’t shut off. Or worse, the toilet shutoff valve inside the tank stops working and the water keeps coming up…and up…and up….
When these things happen, you need to turn the water off, and do it fast. The first thing to do is look for a shutoff valve on the water supply line leading to the faucet or toilet. These valves are usually inside the cabinet under the sink, or in the case of the toilet, close to the floor. The handle is shaped like an oval and is about one inch by two inches in diameter. Twist it clockwise to turn it off and counterclockwise to turn it back on.
Shutoff valves are required by most building codes for each water line in a household. If you’re a renter, the laws for landlords are even stricter. Take a minute right now, while you don’t have a plumbing crisis in your household, to locate the shutoff for each water line in your home or apartment. Turn each one off and back on to make sure it’s working properly.
What if you live in an old building that never had the valves installed? Or what if the valve is there, but it’s so rusty from disuse that it won’t turn off? Then you’re going to need to turn off the water supply to the entire household where it comes in through the wall. This cutoff is usually located in the basement, if you have one.
As to where it enters the home, you’ll need to do a little detective work, preferably while water isn’t pouring into your kitchen or bathroom uncontrollably. Locating the main water supply first depends on whether you have city water or well water.
If you have city water, the main shutoff will most likely be on the side of your house facing the street. That’s because water mains are usually laid alongside the curb for ease of access by city workers. Since city water is already pressurized, there’s no electrical switch going to a water pump. That means the shutoff valve will probably look like a very large faucet with a circular handle.
If you have well water, the shutoff method for turning off the water supply to your home consists of turning off the water pump. This is done in the main circuit breaker or fuse box that controls your electrical supply. The water pump is a 220-volt switch, so it will have its own fuse or breaker switch. Simply locate is and throw it to off. A few precautions: it’s best to locate this switch and label it for future use. And don’t touch the electrical box if there’s water on your basement floor and you’re standing in it. Use a stepstool and make sure your feet and hands are completely dry.
Once you’ve stopped water from flowing to the faulty fixture in your home, the emergency is over. Time to fix the problem yourself, if you’re handy, or call in a plumber.
