What to Do in a Plumbing Emergency Before the Plumber Arrives

The first five minutes matter most

Plumbing emergencies feel chaotic, but most of the damage happens because water keeps flowing while people search for a phone number or the shutoff valve. A few calm steps in the first minutes can be the difference between mopping a floor and replacing drywall, flooring and furniture.

Step 1: Stop the water

Step 2: Make it safe

Safety comes before saving belongings.

• If water is near outlets, electrical panels, extension cords or appliances, stay out of the water and shut off power to that area at the breaker panel only if you can reach it without standing in water.
• If you smell gas, leave the home immediately, don't operate switches or create sparks, and call the gas company and 911 from outside.
• Keep kids and pets away from sewage backups — sewage carries bacteria.
• For a leaking water heater, turn off its gas valve or electrical breaker and close the cold supply valve on top.

Step 3: Relieve pressure and drain the lines

After the main is closed, open a faucet at the lowest point in the house — a basement laundry sink or an outdoor spigot — and a faucet upstairs. This drains the water left in the pipes and reduces how much keeps leaking from the break.

Step 4: Limit the damage

• Move rugs, electronics, boxes and furniture out of the wet area.
• Soak up standing water with towels, a mop or a wet/dry vacuum.
• Put buckets under active drips and poke a small hole in a sagging, water-filled ceiling bulge over a bucket to control where the water goes.
• Open windows and run fans to start drying, if it's safe to use electricity.

Step 5: Stop using drains during a sewer backup

If sewage is coming up through a floor drain, tub or toilet, the main line is blocked. Every flush, shower and load of laundry adds more water to the backup. Tell everyone in the house to stop using water entirely until the line is cleared. Don't use chemical drain cleaners — they rarely clear main line clogs and make the job more hazardous for the plumber.

Step 6: Document for insurance

Take photos and video of the source of the leak and the affected areas before major cleanup, if you can do so safely. Keep any damaged parts the plumber removes. Notes on when the problem started and what you did help with an insurance claim.

Step 7: Call for help — and share the details

When you call, tell the dispatcher what's happening, whether the water is off, and whether sewage, gas or electricity is involved. That helps the plumber arrive with the right equipment.

City & County Plumbing and Drain answers emergency calls 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at (636) 243-8881, across St. Louis City, St. Louis County and St. Charles County.

Prepare before it happens

Take five minutes this week to find your main shutoff, make sure it turns, and label it. Save our number in your phone. A shutoff valve that's frozen or corroded is a small, inexpensive fix today and a very expensive problem during an emergency.