Water you cannot stop is the one job where what you do in the first minute matters more than who you call. Turn the water off at the stopcock before you phone anyone. In most houses it is under the kitchen sink. If it is not there, look in the downstairs cloakroom, under the stairs, in the garage, or near where the supply pipe enters the front of the house. Then call 01462 506 374 and speak to an engineer.

Do this first

• Close the internal stopcock. Turn it clockwise. If it is stiff, do not force it so hard that it snaps
• Open the cold taps downstairs to drain the pipework and take the pressure off the leak
• If the water is anywhere near a light fitting, a socket or a consumer unit, turn the electricity off at the consumer unit
• If the leak is on the heating rather than the mains, turn the boiler off and close the valves at either end of the radiator if you can reach them
• Put a bucket under it and move anything that will be damaged

If you cannot find the stopcock or it will not turn, say so when you call. It changes what we bring and what we do when we arrive.

Where the stopcock usually is in Hertford homes

Hertford runs from riverside cottages by the Lea and the Beane through Victorian terraces to modern estates. In the older riverside properties the stopcock is usually at the front of the house and can be in a cramped position under a floor hatch. In the Victorian terraces check the front of the ground floor. On the newer estates it is under the kitchen sink.

What counts as a plumbing emergency

Not everything that is unpleasant is an emergency, and it is worth knowing the difference before you pay for one. These genuinely are:

• Water coming through a ceiling or down a wall
• A burst pipe or a leak you cannot isolate
• A leak anywhere near electrics
• No water at all in the property
• A blocked drain that is backing up into the house, or sewage surfacing outside
• No heating or hot water where somebody in the house is elderly, unwell or very young

A dripping tap, a running overflow or a slow-draining sink is a normal call-out rather than an emergency, and treating it as one usually costs more than waiting.

What we deal with

• Burst and leaking pipework, including under floors and in walls
• Leaks traced without unnecessary damage to the fabric
• Blocked drains, backing-up toilets and sewage escapes
• Cylinder and tank failures, including overflow into ceilings
• Boiler breakdowns leaving a property with no heating or hot water
• Failed stopcocks and isolation valves
• Leaking radiators and valves

What happens when you call

You speak to somebody who asks what the water is doing, whether it is stopped, and whether it is near electrics. That determines what happens next. If turning something off will contain it until an engineer arrives, we will talk you through that on the phone rather than leave you waiting next to it.

You will be told what the job looks like and given a fixed price before any work begins.

Finding a leak without taking the house apart

A leak shows itself where gravity puts it, which is often nowhere near where it starts. Water tracks along joists and under floor coverings before it appears on a ceiling. Lifting the floor under the stain is the most common way to spend money and find nothing.

We trace first. That means isolating sections, checking pressure behaviour, and using the layout of the property to work out where the pipe actually runs before anything is lifted.

Where we work in Hertford

Across the SG13 and SG14 postcodes.

Gas Safe and company details

Our Gas Safe registration number is 956889 and you are entitled to ask to see the card. Vantage Plumbing and Heating is a limited company, number 13248357. Every job carries a two year guarantee on our own labour.

If it is gas, this comes first

After the emergency

Stopping the water is the first job, not the whole job. Once it is contained we will tell you what failed, why, and what putting it right properly involves, which is often different from what stopped the flood on the night.

Call an emergency plumber in Hertford

Call 01462 506 374 and speak to an engineer.

Frequently asked questions

I cannot find my stopcock. What now? Tell us when you call. If the internal stopcock cannot be found or will not turn, the supply can usually be isolated at the external stop tap in the footpath, and that is something to say on the phone rather than discover on arrival.

The leak is coming through the ceiling. Should I pierce it? A bulging ceiling holding water is heavy and will come down without warning. Keep people out from under it. If you are confident, a small hole at the lowest point over a bucket releases it in a controlled way, but only if the electricity to that area is off.

Do you deal with drains as well as water? Yes, including blockages backing up into the property.

Is a boiler breakdown an emergency? It depends who is in the house. For an elderly, unwell or very young occupant, no heating in cold weather is treated as one.

Related: plumbers in Hertford, drainage services in Hertford, boiler repair in Hertford and all our services in Hertford.