Where is my stopcock?
In most Leicester homes the stopcock is under the kitchen sink, where the mains pipe comes in. If it isn't there, try the downstairs toilet, the cupboard under the stairs, the hallway floor near the front door, a garage or a cellar. In flats it can be in a utility cupboard or a shared area.
Turn it clockwise to close. Leicester's hard water can leave limescale that makes an old stopcock stiff, so turn it steadily and stop if it won't move rather than forcing it. Small isolation valves on the pipes to taps, toilets and appliances let you shut off just one fitting and keep water everywhere else.
If you have a cold water tank in the loft, water can keep flowing after the stopcock is off. Opening the bathroom cold taps drains the tank and slows the leak.
Is it a plumbing emergency, or can it wait?
If water is escaping faster than a bucket can catch it, is near electrics, or is coming through a ceiling, treat it as urgent. If you can stop it with an isolation valve and nothing is getting wet, it can usually wait for a normal booking with photos.
- Urgent
- Burst pipe, water through a ceiling, water near electrics, a leak you cannot stop.
- Urgent
- Your only toilet overflowing or unusable.
- Can usually wait
- A dripping tap, or a slow drip that stops once the valve is off.
- Can usually wait
- A running toilet you can isolate at its own valve.
What if the leak starts after 8pm?
After 8pm, call Norman anyway: he can sometimes still come out, and he tells you the price on the phone before he sets off.
With the stopcock off, almost every household leak stops getting worse, so most homes can get through the night safely. If you can isolate just the leaking fitting, the rest of the house keeps its water. Leave the immersion heater off, and keep the power off in any room where water has reached sockets or lights.
If a ceiling has a bulge of water in it, keep out of the room underneath. Then WhatsApp Norman photos of the leak, the stopcock and any damage, and he will see them first thing in the morning.
What does an emergency plumber cost?
Each repair gets one fixed price before work begins. There is no meter running while a leak is traced or a fitting is replaced. The minimum charge for any visit is £100.
If a second problem shows up once the floor or panel is open, Norman stops, shows you, and prices that part separately. If you plan to claim on home insurance, take photos before anything is moved, and check whether your policy asks you to use its own contractor.
Why does it help that Norman does electrics too?
Leaks and electrics often meet: water through a light fitting, a wet socket behind the washing machine, a dripping pipe above the consumer unit. A plumber alone has to leave the electrics for someone else.
Norman is an electrician as well, so the same visit can fix the leak and test the wet circuit before the power goes back on. That saves a second booking, and a second wait, when you need the house working again. It also means one person is responsible for the whole repair, from the pipe to the socket.