What counts as a plumbing emergency, and what can wait until morning

Call right now

These get worse by the hour and the damage is expensive:

• Water you cannot stop, even with the fixture shutoff closed
• Sewage coming up in a tub, shower, or floor drain
• A gas smell: leave the house first, call the gas company or 911 from outside, then call a plumber once it is safe
• No water to the whole house with no notice from the city
• A leaking water heater you cannot shut off
• A burst pipe in a wall or under the slab

Shut it off, then call in the morning

If you can stop the water, you can usually wait for daytime rates:

• A leaking faucet or toilet supply line, once the valve under it is closed
• A running toilet, if you close the valve behind it
• One slow or clogged drain while the others still work
• A water heater that stopped heating but is not leaking
• A dripping water heater, once the cold water valve above it is closed
• A leaking garbage disposal, if you stop using that side of the sink

Know your shutoffs

Every fixture has a small valve on the wall or under the cabinet. The water heater has a valve on the cold pipe above it. The whole house has a main valve, usually on the front of the house near a hose bib, and another in the meter box at the curb. Find them before you need them. A valve that has not been turned in twenty years can be stuck.

When in doubt, call and ask

Describe what is happening. Mickey will tell you whether it can wait, what to shut off in the meantime, and what the visit costs now versus in the morning. The call is free, and there is no pressure to send someone out tonight if tonight is not needed.

After-hours visits

An after-hours visit can cost more than a weekday one. Mickey tells you the price before he heads out so you can decide. For a true emergency, it is almost always cheaper than the water damage of waiting. One Hour Plumbing Service is based in Norwalk, a short drive from La Mirada at any hour.