Do this first, whatever it turns out to be
Shut off the water. At the fixture if the problem is local — there is a small valve behind every toilet and under every sink — or at the main if it is not, or if you are not sure.
Almost all the cost of a plumbing emergency is water damage, not plumbing. The difference between a contained problem and a ruined floor is usually the ten minutes between noticing and stopping it.
Know where your main is before you need it. Usually near the front of the house or at the meter by the street. Find it today, in daylight, and check the valve actually turns. A seized main shutoff is a small job now and a catastrophe later.
If water is near anything electrical, kill the power to that area at the breaker first — but only if you can reach the panel without walking through the water.
Worth knowing
If a water heater is involved, shut off its supply and turn the unit off — gas to Pilot, or the breaker for an electric one. An electric element that fires in a partly empty tank destroys itself in seconds.
The five that genuinely need someone now
These get worse by the hour, and waiting costs more than the after-hours premium.
- Water you cannot stop. A burst line, a failed supply hose, a valve that will not close. The clock is running on the structure.
- Sewage coming back into the house. A health issue as much as a plumbing one, and every additional gallon makes the cleanup worse.
- Any smell of gas. Leave the building first, then call the utility and 911 from outside. Do not touch a switch on the way out.
- No water at all during a freeze. That is a frozen line that has not burst yet — and there is a short window to act before it does.
- Water reaching electrical outlets, the panel, or an appliance.
What can wait, and will cost less for it
After-hours work typically carries a 25-50% premium. That is fair — someone leaves their family, and the supply houses are shut so whatever is needed has to already be on the truck. But it is worth paying only when it buys you something.
A dripping faucet. Annoying at 11pm. Identical at 9am, and cheaper.
One slow drain, as long as nothing is backing up and other fixtures are fine.
A running toilet. Shut off the valve behind it and it stops entirely until morning.
No hot water in mild weather. Genuinely unpleasant, not damaging.
A small leak you have contained with a bucket and a closed valve.
If you are unsure, call and describe it. We will tell you if it can wait — that conversation costs nothing and it is a better use of the phone call than guessing.
What to have ready when you call
Four things, and having them shortens the call and often the visit.
What you are seeing, specifically. “Water coming from under the water heater” is more useful than “a leak”.
Whether the water is off, and whether you managed the main or just the fixture.
Whether it is one fixture or several. This is the single most useful diagnostic fact, particularly for drains.
Anything recent — work done, a freeze, a storm, a new appliance. Context frequently points straight at the cause.
Photographs help too, especially if the problem is intermittent or in an awkward spot.
Choosing who to call at 2am
The bad time to evaluate a company is while standing in water, which is the argument for having a number already.
Check the licence. Texas requires it on advertising — ours is Master Plumber M-38925, verifiable through the state board. A company that will not give you a number quickly is telling you something.
Ask what the after-hours rate is before agreeing to a visit. Any honest outfit will say.
Be wary of anyone quoting a large job over the phone, sight unseen, in the middle of the night. Emergency work is the easiest time to sell an unnecessary replacement, because nobody is in a position to get a second opinion.
The right sequence at 2am is: stop the water, stop the damage, make it safe. Whether a heater gets repaired or replaced is a decision that can almost always wait for daylight.