Do you reside somewhere that experiences extreme cold? Did the expansion of the frozen water cause the pipes to burst? If yes, you should find a fast fix because this situation could cause your house to flood.
If the water is coming from your water supply and not flooding from outside, you need to quickly turn off the main water shutoff valve to prevent water damage.
To shut down the water, you should know the location of the main water shutoff valve and how to turn it off. Are you wondering how to locate it? You’ll be an expert at finding the main water shutoff valve once you’ve read this article.
So, let’s dive in.
How to Find Main Water Shutoff Valve?
There’s no standard location of the main water shutoff valve; however, with just a little searching, you can locate it easily. Here are three quick ways to find your main water shutoff valve without much hustle:
01. Check the Water Shutoff Valve Inside the House
Look for the water shutoff valve inside your home. Since the water first enters your home through the house perimeter, the valve will likely be located there.
Also, you can stay on your house side facing the street. The water main usually begins at the road and typically ends at your home. After finding the valve, turn the knife-style valve or handle.
However, this is only true, if your water source is from a municipal water supply. If your water source is a well, the water can enter your house from the side or back.
02. Check the Shutoff Valve on Your Property Inspection Report
If you didn’t find the water shutoff valve after physically searching, you can try another alternative; check the inspection report of the property completed for you in the phase of buying your home.
In the report, check the plumbing section. The section should locate the main shutoff valve and the valve’s photo. Even if the water system wasn’t defective during the property inspection report, the report would still note the main shutoff valve location during the course.
03. Find the Street Side Shutoff Valve
Have the previous methods failed? Okay, don’t worry, maybe there could be another valve at your water main at the start of your property boundary line and the sidewalk or street called a curb valve. There, you’ll see a plastic or metallic door of the utility box located at ground level.
If you find it, lift the lid and set it to the side. Remove the sand or dirt gently with your garden trowel or hand as you put it aside. Don’t discard the sand or dirt, as it prevents the pipes from bursting or freezing, especially if you live in an area that freezes in winter.
After you’ve cleared the box, you’ll see two valves inside the utility box- the street side valve and the house side valve.
If you can’t find the utility box, you’ll have no choice but to call the 24-hour emergency contact line of the water company. Their staff would direct you on whether to shut the water valve off by yourself or wait for the emergency dispatch team to do it for you.
How to Shutoff Main Water Valve?
The main types of shutoff valves are ball valves and gate valves. Although they differ in terms of their design, their mechanisms almost work the same. Below is how you can shut each off and on:
01. Ball Valve
A ball valve has a lever handle that works with the lever’s short ¼ turn. It’s handle runs parallel to the pipe when open. It is usually fixed at the point of the main water shutoff in the plumbing system. To turn off the water, rotate the handle from a parallel to a perpendicular position.
The valve’s body has stops that only allow the handle to move from one direction to another; they also stop the handle when it’s fully perpendicular.
02. Gate Valve
A gate valve has a metal gate inside the valve’s body, and it turns the valve off and on. Its circular handle lifts and lowers the gate. The flow stops with lowering of the gate, and vice versa.
So, to turn off the water using the gate valve, you need to turn the round handle clockwise several times until the gate valve entirely shuts off the water.
03. Street Side Shutoff Valve
As said earlier, you’ll find the street-side valve and house-side valve in the utility box. The street side shutoff valve is on the water metre’s street side. Its design enables only the water company to turn it on or off with a special tool. So, don’t try to turn it off. It is illegal to tamper with the street side shutoff valve.
The house-side valve is found at the water metre house side. It may have a nut or a knob for turning. To turn the water off, you need to turn the knob clockwise until it stops.
Conclusion
Learning how to turn your main water shutoff valve off might feel like it should come last on your priority list. However, knowing how to cut the water supply quickly in an emergency would help keep your family safe and prevent you from dealing with costly repairs and water damage. Control of the situation would greatly help damage control and allow you enough time to get help if the circumstances call for it.
Therefore, everybody in your home should be able to locate the main water shutoff valve and know how to turn it on and off if need be. Do you have any other way of locating the main water shutoff valve in your home? If so, kindly leave a comment in the comment box below.
You may also like to read the following article:
A Comprehensive Guide to 11 Types of Main Water Shutoff Valves for Your Home
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Author Bio
Fidelis Kinai – Fidelis Muti possess a bachelor’s in English and Journalism and have over four years of professional experienced writing and proofreading materials for print and online platforms, including newspapers, magazines, websites, blogs, and social media accounts. He also have over three years of experience as a marketing assistant and social media manager. He is versatile and diligent and will produce exemplary content within time to meet your deadline. He can deliver most work within 2-3 days; rush orders are accepted whenever possible. He is based in the Kenya but travel often and work for clients all over the world.