Emergency Plumber

Every home has a main shutoff, but where it hides depends on whether the house is on municipal water or a private well, and whether it has a basement.

It's worth finding yours before you need it. Shutoff valves that haven't been turned in years sometimes seize or start weeping once they're finally moved, and that's a bad discovery to make in the middle of an actual leak. Turning the main off and back on once a year, just to confirm it still moves freely, is a cheap way to avoid that surprise.

How you shut down a water heater depends on its fuel. In both cases, start by closing the cold-water supply valve on top of the tank (turn clockwise) so it stops filling.

• Gas water heater: turn the gas control valve on the front of the tank to the Off position. Don't shut off the gas line itself at the meter or in the basement unless you smell gas — that's a step for a technician or the utility, not routine shutdown.
• Electric water heater: switch off the water heater's breaker (often two slots for 240V units) at the electrical panel, then confirm no power at the unit before touching any wiring.
• If water is leaking from the tank body itself rather than a fitting or valve, the tank has failed structurally and needs replacement rather than repair.
• If standing water is anywhere near outlets, switches, or the panel itself, don't step in it — shut off power at the main breaker only if you can reach it from dry ground.

The Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) frames winter pipe protection around one number: keep the thermostat no lower than 55°F, even in a house nobody's living in at the moment, because a heating failure is one of the fastest ways a home's plumbing goes from safe to at risk — especially during a power outage, when nothing is slowing the house down to outdoor temperature. IBHS also recommends insulating pipes in attics, crawl spaces, and along exterior walls before winter, since those are the locations that freeze first.

• Do shut off the water supply to the affected line before you do anything else, per IBHS's own guidance for a suspected frozen pipe.
• Do apply gentle, steady heat starting at the end nearest the faucet and working back toward the coldest section — a hair dryer, heating pad, or towels soaked in hot water all work.
• Do open the nearest faucet a trickle while thawing; it relieves pressure and tells you the moment water starts moving again.
• Don't use a blowtorch, propane torch, or other open flame on a pipe — it's a common cause of house fires during cold snaps.
• Don't leave an electric heating device unattended on or near a pipe, and never use one near standing water.
• If the pipe has already split, leave the main shutoff closed and call — reopening the water before the repair is made floods the house rather than just the one pipe.
• If you can't find where a pipe is frozen, or it runs behind a finished wall or ceiling, stop trying to thaw it yourself — trace it back from the nearest accessible section and call rather than opening up drywall to reach it.

Once water gets into a floor, wall, or ceiling, the clock matters. The EPA's guidance on mold prevention states that wet building materials need to be dried within 24 to 48 hours to avoid mold growth — after that window, cleanup usually shifts from drying equipment to remediation, which costs more and takes longer.

FEMA's guidance on documenting property loss (published through Ready.gov) lays out the same short checklist adjusters look for on any claim, water damage included.