Do you know how to turn off the water in an emergency?

It’s important that you know how to turn off the water supply into your home so that you can react quickly in an emergency and prevent damage to your property and possessions.

Would you know what to do if you had a burst pipe or a flood at home? If the answer is ‘no’, read our handy guide and step by step instructions below and get in touch if you have any questions.

There are several valves that can be used to turn off your water supply.

Turn off at the meter box – turn the attached lever a quarter turn to stop all the water supply to your property. The handle to turn this valve off will usually be a white plastic handle inside the water meter box. If you live in a walk up or tower block you will need to ask us to do this on your behalf.

Inside every property you will have the following valves to turn off or isolate the water.

Incoming stopcock - normally found in your kitchen, bathroom and maybe airing cupboard. Simply turn the head of the stopcock clockwise until the water stops. This will turn off all the water supply to your property. If this valve is stiff or hard to turn off, then do not force it. Instead, shut of the water at the meter box or contact us to arrange an urgent visit from a plumber.

Isolating valves - if you have a modern kitchen or bathroom (fitted in the last 10 to 15 years) you will normally find a chrome isolating valve on the pipework going to every tap, shower, washing machine valves and any ball valves fitted to your toilet cistern and hot water tank if you have one. These valves will just stop the water to these items allowing your water to stay on to the rest of the property. To close the valve, use a screwdriver to turn the slot on the top a quarter turn so it shows across the flow. Washing machine valves will have a blue or red lever on the valve and you just need to turn these levers a quarter turn to isolate this supply. If these valves are stiff or will not move, do not try to force and instead turn the water off by the incoming stopcock or in the meter box. If you do not have a modern kitchen or bathroom, you may not have these isolating valves fitted so you will need to turn off the water by the incoming stopcock or at the meter box.

Isolating your hot water - your hot water will be supplied by a gas combination boiler or a hot water cylinder. If you have a gas boiler at home, you can isolate the water by shutting off your main stopcock as above. If you have a hot water cylinder look for a red handled valve next to it and turn this valve clockwise as far as it will go to isolate the hot water only. You will then open the hot taps and drain until there is no water coming out of the taps.

Remember, once you have isolated the water please contact us to arrange a repair, or if you are unsure what to do.