When you have a problem with a leaking or overflowing toilet, your first instinct may be just to call a plumber to your Gold Coast home and wait until the DCM Plumbing and Drainage team arrive.

However, before you run off to call the plumber, we recommend that you take the time to do one thing that will save you time and money: turn off the water supply to your toilet.

The shut off valve

Most water sources can only be turned off at the main water valve, but the majority of Australian toilets have a shut off valve with them which will prevent water from flowing through pipes towards the toilet. This is there to allow you to isolate the toilet when you want to carry out general repairs, or in case of emergency.

Finding the valve

DCM Plumbing and Drainage plumbers have found some homeowners don’t know about this valve, or where it is located. In order to find it, you will need to locate the water pipe feeding into your cistern. This pipe can be traced back towards the wall next to the toilet usually. Although sometimes you will need to lift the lid off your toilet cistern to find it inside the cistern.

Turning off the valve

These small valves usually look like a small tap or lever, and in order to close them, you need to rotate the lever or handle clockwise. A quarter turn is often enough to stop the flow of water for a lever, but a handle may require completely closing. You may find this handle or lever very stiff, because it is rarely used, and some WD40 and a pair of pliers might be needed to help get things moving.

Can’t close the valve

If you are unable to locate the valve, or it is too stiff to move without expert equipment, you can still shut off the toilet by closing the main water shutoff valve for your propert. In units this is usually located next to a toilet or under the kitchen or laundry sink. In stand alone homes the shutoff valve is generally located at the water meter which can usually be found at the front of the property a few meters in from the kerb.

Call in the experts

If you have not managed to shut off the water supply to your toilet, then you can call a plumber in the Gold Coast area to help you. DCM Plumbing and Drainage have the necessary experience to stop the leak and fix problems with your toilet, so contact us today, using our form to send your details or calling us today on 07-5576-5305 now.

For more information on plumbing tips, read our previous blocked drains here!