Plumbing Tips | Water Heaters | CarbonePlumbing & Air | Sarasota · Bradenton · Lakewood Ranch
It was 5am. Still dark outside. We got up to take a shower at the Airbnb we were staying at and stepped onto the bathroom floor to find it completely soggy. First thought: the toilet was leaking or overflowing. We checked. Nope, toilet was fine.
We followed the water and headed out to the garage. That is where we found it. The
water heater
was spewing water all over the garage floor, and it had been doing it long enough that it was coming into the house and soaking into the closet. Water everywhere, 5 in the morning, pitch dark outside, in a home we did not know at all.
The shutoff right on top of the unit would not budge. So there we were, outside in the dark, iPhone flashlight in one hand, our general manager Andy on FaceTime in the other, walking the entire property trying to find the main water shutoff. We had no idea what we were looking for or where it would be.
We are sharing this because it happens in homes across Sarasota, Bradenton, and Lakewood Ranch all the time. And most people, just like us in that Airbnb, have no idea what to do in the first few minutes. Here is the guide we wish we had.
Step 1: Stop the Water. Everything Else Comes After.
When you find water where it should not be, the only thing that matters in the first two minutes is shutting it off. Do not try to figure out why it is happening. Do not call anyone yet. Just find the water and stop it.
Start with the shutoff valve on top of the water heater itself, usually a lever or handle on the cold water supply line feeding into the top of the unit. If it turns, great. If it does not budge, do not force it. Go straight to your main water shutoff for the whole house.
Step 2: Find Your Main Water Shutoff and Know What Type of Water You Have
Where your main shutoff is located depends on something most people never think to ask: whether your home is on city water, county water, or a private well.
If your home is on city or county water:
your main shutoff is typically located near your water meter, which in Florida is usually at the street or along the front of your property in a small underground box with a lid. There is also often a shutoff inside the home near where the main supply line enters, which could be in the garage, a utility closet, or along an exterior wall.
In our case at the Airbnb, we checked all of those places first and came up empty. We finally found it out back near the pool heater of all places. In Florida homes the main shutoff can end up near any outdoor mechanical equipment. If you do not find it in the obvious spots, start checking near the pool equipment, the irrigation controller, and any exterior utility areas.
If your home is on well water:
there is no city meter to look for. Your shutoff is either at the pressure tank, which is usually in the garage, a utility room, or a shed near the well pump, or at a shutoff valve on the main line coming out of the pressure tank. Well water homes also have a breaker in the electrical panel that controls the well pump. Shutting that breaker off is a fast and effective way to cut the flow in an emergency.
Not sure which you have?
If you pay a water bill to Sarasota County, City of Sarasota, Manatee County, or a similar utility, you are on public water. If you do not receive a water bill at all, you are almost certainly on a private well.
What does the main shutoff look like?
For city and county water homes, it is usually a tall, narrow pipe coming up from the ground or out of a wall with a lever handle on top. Turn the lever perpendicular to the pipe to shut the water off. If it is a round wheel-style valve, turn it clockwise until it stops. For well water homes, look for the pressure tank, which is typically a large cylindrical tank, and find the shutoff valve on the line leaving it.
This is the single most important thing every person in your household should know before there is ever a problem. If you do not know where yours is right now, stop reading and go find it. We mean it.
Step 3: Cut the Power or Gas to the Water Heater
Electric water heater:
Go to your electrical panel and flip the breaker labeled for the water heater. It is usually a double-pole 30-amp breaker. If the breakers are not labeled clearly, look for the largest ones and flip them until the water heater powers down.
Gas water heater:
Turn the gas supply valve to the OFF position. The gas shutoff is typically on the gas line behind or beside the water heater. It is a small lever that runs parallel to the pipe when open and perpendicular when closed. You can also turn the thermostat dial on the unit itself to Pilot as a temporary measure.
Step 4: Deal With the Water That Is Already Out
Once the supply is off, the leak will slow and stop. Now deal with what is already on the floor.
1.
Grab towels, mops, or a wet-dry vacuum
and remove standing water as fast as possible.
2.
Move everything off the floor
that is sitting in or near the water. Boxes, laundry, anything stored low.
3.
Open doors and turn on fans
to start drying the area. In Florida, mold can begin forming within 24 to 48 hours on wet surfaces.
4.
Take photos and video
of everything before you clean it up. Your homeowner’s insurance will need documentation.
Step 5: Call Carboneand Let Us Figure Out the Rest
Once the water is off and the immediate situation is under control, call Aqua. What caused the leak, whether the unit can be repaired, or whether it needs to be replaced entirely is our job to figure out, not yours. There are several things that can cause a water heater to let go and the right answer depends on what our technicians find when they get there.
What we can tell you is that a water heater actively dumping water is not a wait-and-see situation. The longer it sits, the more potential there is for water damage to floors, walls, drywall, and anything stored nearby. Getting a plumber on the way fast is the right call.
What We Learned at 5am
We were outside in the dark, iPhone flashlight on, our general manager Andy on FaceTime talking us through where to look, walking the entire property trying to find a valve we had never seen before. We eventually found it out back near the pool heater. Not exactly where any guide would tell you to look first.
While all of that was happening, we called the Airbnb owner. No answer. Called his wife. No answer. Sent a text. He called right back and we told him we had it under control and that Carbonewas already on the way. That was the end of the conversation. He knew his guests were taken care of.
Here is what we would tell anyone heading into a vacation rental, a new home, or even just a home they have lived in for years and never thought about:
•
If you are staying somewhere unfamiliar
, find the main water shutoff within the first hour of arriving. Just ask the host, or take a quick walk around the property. It takes two minutes and could save a lot of grief.
•
If you own your home
, make sure everyone who lives there knows where the main shutoff is and how to use it. Show your kids. Tell your house sitter. Write the location down somewhere you will actually find it.
•
If you have not tested your main shutoff recently
, have a plumber check it. Shutoff valves that have not been operated in years can seize up, right when you need them most.
•
If the valve on top of your water heater is stiff or will not turn
, put it on your repair list now before it becomes a 5am problem.
•
If you are an Airbnb host
, write the location of your main water shutoff somewhere your guests can find it on day one. A note on the fridge, a card in the welcome packet, anything. Your guests will not know where to look and at 5am they will not be thinking clearly enough to figure it out on their own.
The owner showed up in less than 10 minutes. He was incredibly thankful we were there and that we had gotten it under control as fast as we did. And as he stood there looking at it, he said something that stuck with us. He pointed out that the property sits empty sometimes between bookings. If that water heater had let go when no one was there, it would have been running for days before anyone noticed. The entire garage. The closet. Potentially into the walls and subfloor. In Florida humidity, that kind of standing water does not just dry out on its own. It turns into a mold situation, and mold in a Florida home is a serious, expensive problem that does not fix itself.
That is the part most people do not think about until it is too late. A water heater failure is a plumbing problem. But a water heater failure in a vacant home, left undetected, can turn into a mold remediation project, a flooring replacement, and a whole lot of damage that no one budgeted for.
When to Call Aqua
Any time a water heater is actively leaking, it needs a licensed plumber. If the T&P valve is discharging, that is a symptom of an underlying pressure or temperature problem that needs diagnosis. If the tank itself is leaking, you need a replacement, and the faster it happens the less additional damage occurs.
In our case, we called Aqua. That is what we do. And it is what we would tell anyone in Sarasota, Bradenton, or Lakewood Ranch to do when a water heater lets go in the middle of the night. Our licensed plumbers are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including nights, weekends, and holidays. We carry fully stocked trucks and we have been handling plumbing emergencies on the Suncoast since 1974.
When your water heater fails, we will be there. Just like we were that morning.
Schedule a service call online
or call
941-366-7676
. We’re available 24/7 , including nights, weekends, and holidays.
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