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EMERGENCIES
People only tend to think of plumbing or plumbers when something goes wrong. Most people will regularly have their cars serviced, but do you have your central heating and plumbing systems checked each year? Think of the value of your car compared with your home. Many disasters can be avoided if discovered soon enough. The Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineers advises that you take the time to get your heating and plumbing systems checked over once a year to find any faults before they turn into major problems.
Unfortunately sometimes plumbing emergencies such as burst and frozen pipes do happen, but you can take steps to limit the damage while you are waiting for your plumber to arrive. Keep in mind that if you are a regular customer a plumber is more likely to drop other work for you in times of emergency.
Get to know your plumbing!! Take some time before an emergency to know where the stop valves (sometimes called stopcocks, gate valves, isolating valves) are. The main cold water stopcocks is often found under the sink - but this is not a rule!!). Try to understand the basics of how your plumbing and heating work, how your hot water is provided, the type of system installed. Much time (and money) can be saved if you can correctly describe the type of system you have when making contact with your Plumber.
Burst Pipes
Try not to panic! The first thing to do is to prevent water passing the point of the leak. Start by turning off all stop valves and if the escaping water cannot be controlled immediately, open all cold water taps so that the pipework and storage system drains quickly. DON'T TURN ON HOT TAPS. Turn off the central heating system and, if it uses a solid fuel boiler, allow the fire to die out. Switch off any electric immersion heater, then call your plumber.
Frozen Pipes
If a pipe freezes, turn off the mains water supply at the stop valve inside your home (if fitted) - these are often sited under the kitchen sink. If there isn't an internal valve, turn off the water at the external valve which may be under a cover in your garden or path. If the frozen pipe runs from a storage cistern and is not controlled by a valve, check that it hasn't split. If it has, empty the cold water storage cistern either by opening the cold water taps and flushing the WC or by siphoning the water from the cistern with a garden hose, then call your plumber. If the pipe isn't split, thaw it out by applying hot water bottles or by careful use of an electric hair dryer. Don't try to thaw it too quickly as there may be splits in the pipe which are not immediately noticeable. Never use a naked flame to thaw a pipe. If any part of the hot water system is frozen, turn off the the boiler (or other heat source), or for solid fuel systems, extinguish the fire.
Be careful because although water may be flowing from taps, other parts of the system may still be frozen !!