Plumbing explainer
Locating the house main valve
When a pipe lets go, the time it takes to kill the water sets the size of the repair bill. Learning where the main is on a quiet afternoon beats any other bit of plumbing homework.
- Locate the meter
- Find the valve before it
- Test it gently twice a year
- Tag it for everyone in the house
Questions? Call(365) 517-7215. A plumber picks up, day or night.
- Open 24/7. Phone answered every hour, holidays too.
- Licensed & insured. Trade licence details given on request.
- Shown before cut. You see the fault and the plan first.
- Gas by gas techs. Licensed gas technicians on gas heaters.
Where to look
- Toronto houses usually take their water through the street-facing basement wall, so start by finding the meter there.
- The valve is usually just before the meter on the pipe coming out of the floor or wall.
- Older houses can tuck it behind shelving, inside a cold cellar, or boxed in behind drywall with a small hatch.
Gate or ball
- A wheel-shaped handle marks a gate valve that takes many stiff turns; a flat lever marks a ball valve that shuts in a quarter rotation.
- Turn gate valves gently.
- If they will not move, do not force them with a wrench; that can snap the stem.
Condos and townhouses
- Condo units tend to hide their valves in a closet, behind a hatch near the kitchen, or above the ceiling of the laundry closet.
- Your building management can tell you where.
Close the main valve first, phone second.