What to Do in a Water Leak
A leak inside the house can escalate quickly, and the first few minutes matter more than anything else you do afterwards.
A leak inside the house can escalate quickly, and the first few minutes matter more than anything else you do afterwards. Knowing the sequence in advance saves time when you actually need it.
Stop the water first
Turn off the stopcock, usually under the kitchen sink or near where the mains enters the property, before doing anything else.
Protect the property
Switch off electrics near the affected area if water is anywhere near sockets or fittings, and move anything valuable out of the way.
Then call for help
Once the water is off and immediate hazards are managed, get an engineer out to find and fix the source rather than just mopping up.
Questions we get asked
Should I turn off the boiler too?
If the leak is anywhere near the boiler or its pipework, isolating the boiler is a sensible precaution.
What if I can't find the stopcock?
Most are under the kitchen sink, near the front of the property, or in a utility room; it's worth locating it now, not during an emergency.
Is a small drip worth calling someone out for?
A drip that's slowly worsening or coming from an unclear source is worth investigating before it becomes a bigger leak.