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This is a guide on how to isolate a water supply in or to your property in the event of a plumbing emergency.
Usually there is a stop tap located on the incoming water main to your property. This stop tap will be located on a pipe very soon after the incoming water main enters your property. For those of you who do not know what a stop tap looks like please see the next image below. This is a modern stop tap, older stop taps are quite similar in appearance but are generally bulkier and could well be covered in paint. 9 times out of 10 you will find the stop tap on the incoming main located under the kitchen sink. The stop tap may be obscured by cleaning materials or pots and pans. If the stop tap is not immediately visible there may be a cut out in the kitchen cupboard and the stop tap may be hidden in that recess. Oh by the way once you find the stop tap you must turn in clockwise like a regular tap to turn off the water supply. Righty tighty lefty Loosey!
If you have not been able to find the stop tap under the kitchen sink there are other less common locations it may be hiding. The next most popular would be in the down stairs cloakroom. Try looking near the cloakroom toilet or wash hand basin. The stop tap may be hidden in boxing so keep your wits about you.
Should you be struggling to find the internal stop cock then there are alternatives.
At your property boundary should be a boundary box belonging to the water board.
Inside this boundary box there will be another stop tap. You can also turn this
clockwise to turn off the water supply to your property. Sometimes, however it is
not that straight forward. Pictured below are the two main types of boundary box
cover. Picture one is of the older cast iron style boundary box and picture two
is of the modern plastic boundary box. In the modern boundary box you may find a
white plastic lug type stop tap instead of the brass type above. These plastic type
stop taps seem a great piece of kit. They do not appear to seize up and therefore
very easy to turn.
Modern brass stop cock
Problem one maybe locating the boundary box. Ideally you should know before a plumbing emergency where your boundary box is located. Trying to find one of these in the dark can be a nightmare!
You could encounter problem two and or three with the older cast iron style boundary box. Once you locate this type of boundary box you have to prise up the cast iron lid by inserting a lever into the gap provided. Sometimes the lids are very stiff and you may need to scrape out tarmac or debris from around the lid to get it to move (problem 2). Once you have the lid up you will either be faced with a stop tap (you may need a torch to see it) or a pile of mud (problem 3). Often the stop taps get buried in mud or silt due to neglect. You will have to access the mud to access the stop tap. There is a possibility that once you have removed as much mud or silt as you can with your hands there is still no stop tap. The stop tap could be deeper still, you could try using a long stop tap key to feel around in the mud to try and engage the stop tap head. It could be an old disused boundary box. Try and find another or if one is not visible call the water board.
When you have located your boundary box you may require a stop tap key to reach the stop tap. Stop tap keys keep you cleaner and help prevent injury. They also allow you to exert more force on the stop tap. This is favourable as the stop tap may have been unused in the ground for many, many years and therefore quite stiff.
If you live in a very rural area or a Victorian terraced house you may find there is one boundary box and one shared water main between several properties. If you turn this stop cock off in the boundary box you turn everybody sharing that water main off. Ideally you should ask the water board to put in your own separate water main and water meter.
The modern plastic boundary box lids are easily pried up with the blade of a flat bladed screw driver. Below the lid is usually a foam frost protector. Don’t forget to replace this after you have finished using the stop tap. You will then see a plastic lug. This is the modern equivalent of a stop tap. This is easily turned by hand if reachable. This device is operated by a quarter of a turn. Turn the device clockwise to turn the water supply off.
There are also other devices in your property that can isolate water. We will not show you all of these as you may do more harm than good. However if you have a problem with a tap or a toilet for instance there may be a inline isolator valve or “Ball-o-fix” on the feed pipe to the tap or toilet. These are easily operated with a flat bladed screwdriver. Simply insert the flat bladed screwdriver into the visible slot and turn the screwdriver 90 degrees in any direction. T
Old style cast iron boundary box cover
Modern plastic boundary box cover
Stop cock key
Our Worcester Plumbers show you how to isolate a water supply
Ball-o-fix
An isolating device very similar to the Ball-o-fix can be found on the feed pipes to washing machines. These actually have a handle included and the water is isolated by turning the handle. It is common for these washing machine taps to seize up or not close fully so please be careful.
Washing machine tap
If it is a total emergency and there is no way of locating an isolating valve of any type it may be worth considering crimping the feed pipe to the leak or burst with a pair of pliers or even hammering the pipe closed. This may reduce flow however it may also cause other leaks. Please only try this as a last resort.
This guide was brought to you by Budget plumbing, your local Worcester plumbers. If you are looking for plumbers in Worcester please call budget plumbing for a rapid response.
Turn the plastic handle clockwise