Find your stopcock: a two-minute check every homeowner should do
The most common thing we hear on an emergency call-out is that the homeowner did not know where their stopcock was, or found it but it would not turn.
The usual locations
Under the kitchen sink in most housing. In older pre-1919 streets near the castle, also check a downstairs cupboard or under the stairs.
A Whitfield new-build story
One new-build call-out took twenty minutes just to locate the stopcock, boxed in behind a kitchen plinth with no access panel marked. Know yours before you need it.
Test it, gently
Once a year, turn it fully off and back on. Older stopcocks that are never operated can seize.
Know the outside stopcock too
Most properties also have an external one near the boundary, belonging to the water company.
Honest price from a photo
Photos, description and postcode to hello@doverplumbers.co.uk or on WhatsApp. Same-day reply on straightforward jobs.