What to do if a pipe bursts in your home

Step 1 — turn off the water at your main stopcock (usually under the kitchen sink). Step 2 — open all cold taps to drain the system fast. Step 3 — turn off the electricity at the consumer unit if water is anywhere near sockets, lights or the fuse board. Step 4 — turn off the boiler and central heating. Step 5 — contain the leak with buckets, towels and a tarp, and move valuables clear. Step 6 — call a 24/7 emergency plumber. The faster you stop the flow, the less damage you'll have to repair.

Stop the water at the stopcock

Your internal stopcock is usually under the kitchen sink. In older flats it can be in a hallway cupboard or under the bath. Turn it clockwise until it stops — that shuts off the cold mains supply to the whole property.

If you can't find the stopcock or it's seized (a common problem in older London flats), the next option is the external stopcock at the boundary of your property, which water companies can also operate.

Open the taps to drain the system

Once the mains is off, open every cold tap in the house — kitchen, bathroom, basins, outside tap. This drains residual water out of the system fast, reducing the volume that can keep leaking.

Flush the toilets too. A few minutes of this and the system will be substantially empty.

Kill the power if water is near electrics

Water and electricity are a serious safety risk. If water is dripping near a light fitting, into a ceiling rose, near sockets or onto the consumer unit itself, switch off the main switch on your fuse board immediately.

Do not use any switches, sockets or lights in the affected room until the leak is stopped and the area inspected.

Turn off the heating and boiler

Switch the boiler off at its electrical isolator (usually a fused spur next to the unit). This stops it firing dry and damaging the heat exchanger if the leak has affected the heating side.

Contain the leak and protect your stuff

Use buckets, washing-up bowls, mop heads and old towels to catch and absorb water. Move rugs, electronics, paperwork and valuables clear of the affected area.

If water is collecting in a ceiling and creating a bulge, place a bucket below and (carefully) puncture the bulge with a screwdriver — releasing it controllably is much better than the whole ceiling collapsing.

Call a 24/7 emergency plumber

Once the water is off and the area is safe, call a plumber. Tell them: the address, that it's a burst pipe, where in the property it is, and whether you've been able to shut the water off.

We attend burst-pipe call-outs across London 24/7 — typically within 1–2 hours for East and Central London postcodes.

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