Nobody wants to have a major plumbing emergency. At least you have a reliable plumber in the area who can help when you’ve got major trouble from the plumbing. Never hesitate to call us when you think you’ve got a plumbing emergency—if you wait, you’ll likely end up with a worse problem.
However, before you call us for help, there’s something essential to know in case of a plumbing mishap that’s threatening to flood your home. You must know where the water main shut-off valve for the house is and how to activate it. Share this knowledge with the other adults in the house so they also know how to stop the water flow into the house in case of emergency.
Shutting Off the Municipal Water Supply
Almost all homes in Orange County receive water from the municipal supply, rather than from a well, so this advice should apply to your home.
The first step in finding the shut-off valve is finding the water meter. The meter controls and monitors the water flow into your house. The meter is usually located close to the curb or sidewalk in your front yard. Remove the lid from the meter and you’ll see two sides to the meter: one is the side into your house, and the other is the city side.
Check for a hand-operated valve on the homeowner side. If there is one, this is the valve to use when you need to shut off the water. It’s simple—just turn the valve clockwise to close it. (Later, when the plumbers have finished the repairs, they’ll probably turn the valve to open up the water supply again.)
If there isn’t a valve on the homeowner side, you’ll need to turn the valve on the city side. This requires using a special meter key. In some situations, the key will hang near the valve. If it isn’t there, you can purchase one from a hardware store. The city doesn’t like homeowners to use the city-side valve except in cases of emergencies—such as the ones were talking about.
Installing an Emergency Shut-Off Valve
This is a service we recommend for most of our customers. An emergency shut-off valve is a device attached to the water main that detects when a drop in water pressure inside the house indicates a large plumbing leak. Some types of emergency shut-off valves have detectors inside to find out when water is entering the house.
Regardless of how it detects the issue, this valve automatically closes off the water main in case of emergencies. This is immensely helpful for situations when nobody is at home, such as when you’re on an extended vacation. If you have concerns about flooding when you’re absent, we strongly advise calling a plumber in Irvine, CA (one of ours!) to put in an emergency shut-off valve.
No matter what plumbing repairs you need, you can depend on our licensed plumbers to have the problem solved.
Saddleback Plumbing has proudly served Orange County since 1981. Schedule water main or shut-off valve service today.