What do you do when you’ve got a leaky sink or toilet and you need to fix it? The first step in any Plumbing repair is to shut off the water supply. That way, you can deal with the problem without water running through the sink, toilet, water heater, or pipe you’re trying to repair.
But HOW do you shut off the water valve? Here are simple instructions for anything you need to fix:
• Toilet — Look behind the toilet seat, beneath the tank that fills with water for flushing. You will see two chrome-plated knobs, one on each side. Twist them clockwise to turn them off. Turn both off to ensure that there is no water running into the toilet tank.
• Sink — Look beneath the sink, and you will see two chrome-plated knobs as well. The one on the left is hot water, and the one on the right is cold water. Once again, turn them clockwise to shut off the water.
• Water heater — The water valve for the water heater is usually above the boiler, though some homes have it behind or below the heater. Look for a plastic knob or metal handle that will allow you to close the pipe that feeds cold water to the boiler.
• Washing machine — Washing machines will usually have a simple faucet-type knob you can turn to cut the water supply, though some have lever-style valves. Look in the back of the washing machine to find the water hose, and trace the hose to its connection in the wall.
All pretty simple to find, right? But what happens if you need to turn off the water to your entire house? Where do you find the whole-house valve or switch?
You can usually find the whole house water supply pipe near the water heater/boiler. If it’s not there, it may be located near the entrance to your property. Look for a pipe that runs out of the ground or outer wall and connects to the main water pipes for your whole house.
Or, you can turn off the water to your entire property. Check near the water meter, and turn off the valve/knob on the house side of the meter. You can usually find the water meter on the street outside your home, usually in a concrete box below ground level.
Need help figuring out where your whole house and property shut-off valves are? Call Ford’s Plumbing, and we’ll send out an expert to help you understand your home’s plumbing and deal with any plumbing problems you may have. We’re more than happy to help!
