Emergency Plumber in Hitchin
24/7 Emergency Plumber
When you have a water leak or the heating fails in your home it is often at the most stressful time. More than anything you need to know that help is just a phone call away. Call Vantage Plumbing and Heating services for a rapid, friendly response. Our fully trained and experienced plumbers are available 24/7 and will work to resolve your problems as soon as possible.
An emergency plumber to ease your mind
Generally, nothing seems to bother us as children. The cost of living, getting or keeping a job, buying somewhere to live and maintaining said property, the list is virtually endless. We go through our adult lives stressing about all of the above and more, but one thing that people tend not to worry about until it happens, is a flood at home.
Should you ask what most adults fear when it came to home ownership, the answers would most likely be, repossession, burglary and fire. Very few would say flood damage. Now we are not talking about flood damage caused by an actual flood brought about by excess rain or the nearby river bursting its banks, we are referring to the sort of flood caused by a burst water pipe.
When only an emergency plumber will do
You will only appreciate the gravity of any situation when you’ve experienced it firsthand. Sure, you can imagine and sympathise with people who have suffered a burst water pipe in their home, but to fully appreciate the utter devastation water can cause has to be experienced to be fully understood. Only when you’ve been in this position, will you fully appreciate the need for a prompt and professional emergency plumber. They truly are the first responders in such an emergency.
The damage can be minimised by an emergency plumber
The sheer level of damage water can do is immense. Water is something we need to sustain life, but the negative impact on unrestrained flow can also be a genuine threat to that life. Water can destroy building supports, leading to sag and collapse, it can find its way into electrical outlets and we all know the dangers of water and electricity, or it may just damage soft furnishings and possessions, although this is no small matter. Getting an emergency plumber out in a very short space of time can minimise the amount of damage cause by water leaking inside your home.
Sometimes we don’t even know that there is a leak, until the tell tale signs start to manifest, whereas more obvious leaks or pipe bursts are instantly noticed.
A slow leak may still cause untold damage, possibly more than a sudden and violent burst pipe, but it’s the latter that tends to be the domain of the emergency plumber. A slow leak may not be apparent until you start to notice a musty smell, notice an increase of silverfish insects that thrive in damp conditions, or realise that your ceiling is stained or starting to sag, or that the wall plaster is becoming cold and crumbly. These types of leaks can do a huge amount of damage over time and if you have raised floorboards, much of the excess water will leak away underground before you notice anything untoward. In such cases, a plumber should be called, but is an emergency plumber needed there and then? Probably not!
A sudden burst, where water is gushing needs immediate attention and an emergency plumber is a must and the sooner the better.
Steps to take before the emergency plumber calls
If water is pouring from somewhere it clearly shouldn’t, the first and most important course of action is to isolate the water main via the stop valve. This stops any new water from entering the property, well, hopefully. Occasionally the burst in a pipe may occur on the short length of pipe situated before the stop valve. In cases such as this, the water must then be isolated from the main stop valve that is usually located out in the street and turning this off may also affect the supply to other properties in your street. The chances are that only an emergency plumber will have the tools and the knowledge to isolate the water flow to your property from this point anyway.
An emergency plumber can save you money
When the worst happens, having an emergency plumber call in good time can literally save you thousands of pounds. When you consider the damage water can do to property, it makes perfect sense to call out an emergency plumber as quickly as possible, bail out and mop up as much water as you can while you wait and between the emergency plumber and yourself, you could save a great deal of money and heartache over property that has been damaged beyond repair.
Some Hitchin history
Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce people, a tribe holding three hundred hides of land as mentioned in a seventh century document, the Tribal Hidage. Hicce, or Hicca, may mean the people of the horse. The tribal name is considered to be taken from Old English and derives from the Middle Anglian people. It has been suggested that Hitchin was the location of ‘Clofeshoh’, the place chosen in 673 by Theodore of Tarsus the Archbishop of Canterbury during the Synod of Hertford, the first meeting of representatives of the fledgling Christian churches of Anglo-Saxon England, to hold annual synods of the churches as Theodore attempted to consolidate and centralise Christianity in England.
By 1086 Hitchin is often described as a Royal Manor in the Domesday Book. The feudal services of avera and inward, usually found in the eastern counties, especially Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire, were due from the sokemen, but the manor of Hitchin was unique in levying inward. A sokeman was essentially a freeman who would have had extensive rights, particularly over his land. Evidence has been found to suggest that Hitchin was once provided with an earthen bank and ditch fortification, probably in the early tenth century, to repel raiders and enemies from entering Hitchin. The modern spelling of Hitchin first appears in 1618 in the Hertfordshire Feet of Fines.
The name of Hitchin is also associated with the small river that runs through it. The river is noted on maps as the River Hiz. Contrary to how most people now pronounce the name, that is to say as spelt, the ‘z’ is an abbreviated character for a ‘tch’ sound in the Domesday Book. It would have been pronounced ‘River Hitch’. The Hicca Way is an eight-mile walking route along the River Hiz Valley, believed to have been used for trade between the Danes and English in the Anglo-Saxon age. It is also likely that Hitch Wood, which lies six miles south of Hitchin, also derives its name from the Hicce tribe, who gave their name to Hitchin.
During the medieval period, both a priory Newbigging, which is now known as The Biggin and a friary, now known as Hitchin Priory were established, both of which closed during Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries. They were never reformed, although The Biggin was for many years used as almshouses.
Record weather event for Hitchin
In 1697, Hitchin was subject to what is thought to have been the most severe hailstorm in recorded British history. Hailstones over four inches in diameter were reported to have battered the town.
Hitchin flourished on the wool trade and located near the Icknield Way and by the 17th century Hitchin was a staging post for coaches coming from London. By the middle of the 19th century the railway had arrived, and with it a new way of life for Hitchin. The corn exchange was built in the market place and within a short time Hitchin established itself as a major centre for grain trading.
The latter half of the 20th century has also brought great changes in communication to Hitchin. Motorways have shortened the journey time and brought Luton, a few miles away on the M1, and the A1 (M) even closer. By the close of the 20th century, Hitchin had developed a strong commuter interest being midway between London and Cambridge. Hitchin also developed a very strong Sikh community based around the Walsworth area.
An education first for Hitchin
The British Schools Museum in Hitchin is home to the worlds only surviving complete Lancasterian Schoolroom, which was built in 1837 to teach boys by the Lancasterian method of peer tutoring. This unique community project demonstrates the foundation of education for all.
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- 01462 506374
- Croft Chambers, 11 Bancroft, Hitchin, Hertfordshire, SG5 1JQ
