Deal With It Now or Wait Until Morning? A Thornton Plumbing Checklist

Water is somewhere it should not be, or it is not coming out where it should, and you want to know if this can wait for morning. This page sorts it. If your problem is on the first list, do the first step right now: it stops the damage. Then call (720) 856-5811, Monday to Saturday, 9am to 6pm. Outside those hours the phone is not answered, so stop the water, limit the damage, and call when the line opens. If it is on the second list, you can usually shut one valve and wait. When in doubt, shut the water off and call us with what you see.

Deal with it now: these do not wait

• Water you cannot shut off. Close the main shutoff. If the main will not turn or still leaks, stop running water inside, move belongings out of the way, and call us. If the water is coming from the city side of your meter, see the note on the city water number below.
• A burst or split pipe. Shut the main, then open a faucet at the lowest point in the house to drain the line. Move belongings out of the wet area. Freeze-split copper in an unheated crawl space or garage wall is the usual cause on the Front Range. See burst pipes and freeze risk on the Front Range. Our water leak repair page explains what repair involves.
• Sewage coming up a drain. Stop running water in the house: no flushing, no laundry, no dishwasher. Wastewater has nowhere to go. A root-filled clay joint or a bellied line in the yard is a common cause. We run a camera through the line before recommending digging. More on sewer line repair.
• Water near electrical. Stay out of the wet area. If you can reach the panel dry, from a dry spot, turn off the breakers for that area. If you cannot do that safely, call the electric utility or 911. Then shut off the water main and call us for the plumbing side.
• A water heater leaking from the tank. Shut the cold supply valve on top of the tank. For an electric heater, turn off its breaker. For gas, set the gas control to off or pilot. A tank that leaks from the shell, not a fitting, is usually a corroded tank, often after the anode rod is spent. Details on water heater repair.
• No water at all. Check whether neighbors are also out. If only your house is dry, look at the main shutoff and the meter. If the main is open and nothing comes out, call us.
• No hot water in a hard cold snap. A cold house and a cold water heater is a bad night, and an unheated crawl space near the heater can freeze. Close the cold supply on top of the tank if you see any water around it. A failed thermocouple, a dead element, or a frozen line are all possible. Tell us what the heater is doing.

Gas smell and city-side water problems

If you smell gas, leave the house, do not use switches or phones inside, and call 911 and your gas utility from outside. The City of Thornton says gas in Thornton is provided by Xcel Energy or United Power depending on your address, so check your bill to see which is yours.

If water is bubbling up out of the ground or pavement, or pressure drops across the whole street, that may be a water main issue on the city side. The City of Thornton lists 720-977-6500 for after-hours emergencies and to report a water break. Call that number for the main, and call us for anything on your side of the meter.

Can usually wait until morning

• One slow drain. Stop using that fixture. Do not pour chemical cleaner down it, since it can sit in the pipe and hurt whoever opens it later. If a second drain also slows, the problem is deeper in the line and calling sooner makes sense. See drain cleaning and clogged drain repair.
• A running toilet you can shut off. Turn the stop valve behind the toilet clockwise until it stops. The usual cause is a worn flapper or fill valve. See toilet repair.
• A dripping faucet. Usually a worn cartridge or washer. Close the stop valve under the sink if the noise or the waste bothers you.
• A garbage disposal that hums. It is jammed. Turn off the switch, and do not put your hand in. Many disposals have a hex socket on the underside for turning the motor by hand. See garbage disposal repair.

If any of these turns into water spreading on a floor, move it to the first list.

Find your main shutoff before you need it

In Thornton homes the main is typically on the front wall of the basement, in a crawl space, or in the garage. Some homes also have a curb stop near the street, in a small round lid in the yard or sidewalk strip. Look near where the water line enters the house, usually below the hose bib on that wall.

A ball valve has a lever: a quarter turn, with the lever across the pipe meaning closed. A gate valve has a round wheel: turn clockwise until it stops. Old gate valves can stick or leak at the stem, so test yours now, not during a flood.

To test it: close the main, open a faucet, and confirm the flow stops. Open the main again slowly. If it will not move, or drips after you turn it, tell us. A stuck main is worth fixing on a calm day. Tie a tag to it so everyone in the house knows where it is.

What to tell us when you call

• What you see and hear: where the water is, what color, whether it is running or dripping.
• Whether you got the water shut off, and which valve you used.
• Which fixture or room is affected, and whether more than one drain is slow.
• For a water heater: gas or electric, and whether the tank itself is wet.
• Whether water reached electrical outlets, the panel, or a finished ceiling.
• Your address and a number where we can reach you.

Photos help once you are safe. Do not stop to take them before shutting off the water.

What happens after you call

We explain what we find and put a written scope and price in front of you to approve before work starts. Cost depends on access, parts and materials, how much has to be opened up, and permits. We do not quote numbers over a description alone, and nothing starts until you agree.

The short version

Water you cannot stop, a burst pipe, sewage in a drain, water near electrical, a leaking tank, no water, or no hot water in a hard freeze: deal with it now. Shut the valve, stop running water, keep people out of sewage, then call when the line is open. A slow drain, a toilet you can shut off, a drip, or a humming disposal: shut the valve and call when the line is open. Call (720) 856-5811.