Jump In by Problem

If you smell gas, leave the building first, touching no switches and using no phone inside; call 911 and the gas utility from outside and well away, and stay out until they clear it. If a carbon monoxide alarm sounds, leave first and call 911 from outside.

Find what is happening in your house below and go straight to the chapter that deals with it.

Water where it should not be

• A pipe has burst or water is pouring out: Chapter 29
• Water on the floor near outlets, a panel or appliances (do not walk through it): Chapter 29
• You need to stop the water and do not know where the valve is: Chapter 6
• The water bill jumped, or you suspect a hidden leak: Chapter 28
• A faucet drips: Chapter 8
• Water around a washer, dishwasher or icemaker line: Chapter 11
• A shower or tub leaks or drips: Chapter 10
• The relief valve drips or its discharge pipe runs (do not cap or plug it): Chapter 24
• Water around the base of a toilet: Chapter 15

No water or weak water

• No water anywhere in the house: check your own main shutoff in Chapter 6, then ask the water utility; Chapter 3 explains the path the water takes
• No water in cold weather, or a pipe you think has frozen: Chapter 30
• Low pressure all over the house, or pressure that seems too high: Chapter 7
• One faucet runs weak: Chapter 9
• A weak or uneven shower: Chapter 10

No hot water

• No hot water at all: Chapter 26
• You want to know how the tank works before you do anything: Chapter 22
• Water too hot, or you want to set it safely: Chapter 23
• Rust, sediment, or a tank that has not been looked at in years: Chapter 25
• The heater is old and you are choosing a replacement: Chapter 27

Toilets

• A toilet keeps running or refills on its own: Chapter 13
• A toilet will not clear: Chapter 14
• A toilet rocks: Chapter 15
• You want to see how the parts inside the tank work together: Chapter 12

Drains

• A slow sink or tub: Chapter 16
• Something dropped down the sink, or a trap to clean: Chapter 17
• Someone already poured drain chemical in: Chapter 18
• Every drain in the house backing up at once: Chapter 20
• Slow drains or wet ground on a septic system: Chapter 21
• You want to understand why a drain runs slowly at all: Chapter 4

Smells

• A strong sewer smell, or headache, dizziness or nausea with it (get out and call the fire department from outside first): Chapter 19
• A faint sewer smell in one room: Chapter 19
• A smell or gurgling at a drain that is seldom used: Chapter 5
• A sewage smell in the yard over a septic system (never open or lean into the tank): Chapter 21

Noises

• Bangs, hums or knocks in the walls: Chapter 31
• Rumbling from a water heater tank: Chapter 31

Water quality

• You want to know what the water report means: Chapter 32
• You are worried about lead: Chapter 33
• Crust on faucets, spots on glasses or film in the tub: Chapter 34
• You are deciding between a filter and a softener: Chapter 35
• Your water comes from your own well: Chapter 36

Buying or remodeling

• You want the whole plumbing picture of a house you just bought: Chapter 1
• You want to know what you can do yourself: Chapter 2
• You want to know what the old pipes are: Chapter 37
• You are planning a remodel and wondering about permits: Chapter 38
• You are hiring someone and want to do it properly: Chapter 39