What should I do if a pipe bursts?

Isolate the water at your internal stop tap where you can safely reach it, move valuables and electrical items clear of the area, and contact us straight away. Avoid attempting a DIY repair on the pipe itself — a temporary fix done incorrectly can make the eventual repair harder. See our full burst-pipe guide for the complete safety steps.

Where is my stop tap, and how do I turn off the water?

Common locations include under the kitchen sink, in an airing cupboard, under the stairs, or near the property boundary at the water meter — but layouts vary by property, so it's worth locating yours before an emergency happens, not during one. Our stop-tap guide walks through this in more detail.

Can you attend on the same day or outside normal hours?

It depends on current capacity at the time you call — we'll give you an honest answer during triage rather than a blanket promise. [Publishing note: state actual current availability policy here.]

Can a burst or leaking pipe be repaired on the first visit?

Often, yes — but not always. It depends on access, the extent of the damage, and whether the right materials are available on the day. Where a same-visit permanent repair isn't practical, we'll explain the temporary measure in place and agree a follow-up.

What should I do if my toilet is overflowing?

Stop flushing immediately — repeated flushing usually makes it worse, not better. If you can safely reach it, use the isolation valve at the base of the cistern, then contact us. Avoid attempting to clear a blockage yourself if there's any uncertainty about what's causing it.

Who is responsible for a leaking supply pipe?

This can depend on exactly where the pipe sits and who owns that section — generally, the section from the property boundary to the house is the homeowner's responsibility, while the section before that may fall to the water company. For a full explanation, see Ofwat's guidance on supply-pipe responsibility; we're happy to help you work out which applies to your situation.

Can landlords and tenants both request emergency plumbing repair?

Yes, though access, authorisation and billing arrangements can differ depending on the tenancy setup — we'll talk this through when you contact us. If the issue also touches gas safety compliance, our Landlord Gas Safety Certificates page covers that separate requirement.

Is emergency plumbing repair different from emergency boiler repair?

Yes — plumbing repair covers pipework, leaks and fixtures; boiler repair covers heating and hot-water system faults specifically. If you've lost heating or hot water rather than water damage, our Emergency Boiler Repairs page is the right starting point.

Emergency Plumbing Repair

Emergency Plumbing Repair in Portsmouth, Southampton & Nearby Areas

Q: What counts as a plumbing emergency?

Broadly, a burst or actively leaking pipe you can't control, a serious uncontrolled water leak, an overflowing toilet or cistern, and water appearing near electrical fittings. A slow drip or a boiler that's stopped heating are real issues but usually don't need the same urgency — get in touch, and we'll help you work out which category applies.

Q: What should I do if water is leaking near the electrics?

Don't touch switches, sockets, or appliances in the affected area. Where it's safe to do so, isolate power to that circuit at the consumer unit rather than at the fitting itself, and keep clear until the situation has been assessed. This is a safety priority ahead of the plumbing repair itself.

Q: How much does an emergency plumber cost?

It depends on timing, access, the complexity of the diagnosis, materials needed, and the scope of repair required. We talk through likely cost drivers on the initial call and confirm the actual price once an engineer has assessed the fault — we don't publish a fixed headline rate because it genuinely varies.

A burst pipe, a leak you can't stop, or a toilet that won't stop overflowing doesn't wait for a convenient time. Dv Plumbing and Gas Services provides emergency plumbing repair for homes and rental properties across Portsmouth, Southampton, Fareham, Waterlooville, Havant, and Chichester. Family-run with over 40 years of combined experience, we handle the call, talk you through safe first steps, and get an engineer to the right place with the right approach.

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Emergency Contact

What Counts as a Plumbing Emergency?

Not every plumbing issue needs an urgent, same-visit response — and knowing the difference helps you get the right help faster. As a rough guide, the situations below are the ones we treat as genuinely urgent:

A burst or actively leaking pipe that you can't isolate yourself, or that's getting worse
A serious, uncontrolled water leak — through a wall, under a floor, or pooling somewhere it shouldn't be
An overflowing toilet or cistern that continues after the flush has stopped
Water appearing near sockets, switches, or light fittings, where the safety risk goes beyond the plumbing itself

If your issue is a slow drip, a dated bathroom, or a boiler that's stopped heating rather than leaking, it's still worth getting looked at — just via the right route. A dripping tap can usually wait for a scheduled visit; a pipe spraying water into a ceiling void cannot. If you're not sure which category you're in, contact us and describe what you're seeing — we'll help you work out whether it needs an urgent visit or a standard booking.

Suspect a Gas Leak or Carbon Monoxide?

If you can smell gas, hear a hissing sound near a gas appliance, or suspect carbon monoxide (headaches, dizziness, a stale or unusual smell), this is not a plumbing call. Leave the property if you can do so safely, avoid naked flames or electrical switches, and contact the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 immediately. Read the HSE's gas safety guidance for homeowners for the full official response. Once the immediate gas concern has been resolved by the emergency service, our Landlord Gas Safety Certificates and Commercial Gas Services pages cover the separate, planned side of gas compliance.

What's Included in Our Emergency Plumbing Repair Service

Emergency plumbing repair covers urgent domestic — and, where operationally supported, property-manager and commercial — plumbing faults where water is actively causing or threatening damage. In practice, that means:

Burst and leaking pipe repair, including copper, plastic, and push-fit pipework

Serious water leak diagnosis and repair, from under-sink fittings to concealed pipe runs

Overflowing toilet and cistern repair, including ballcock, valve, and fill-mechanism faults

Tap, shower, and fixture leak repair, where the leak is genuinely urgent rather than cosmetic

Emergency isolation and temporary containment are used to stop water damage from spreading while a permanent repair is scoped

What it deliberately doesn't cover on this page: boiler breakdowns and heating faults (see Emergency Boiler Repairs), suspected gas leaks (official emergency route above), and planned refurbishment work such as a full bathroom re-fit (see Bathroom Installations and Bathroom Refurbishments). Keeping these separate means your call gets routed to the right specialism the first time, rather than into a generalist queue.
Every emergency visit starts the same way regardless of the fault: isolate what's causing active damage, assess what's actually happening (not just what's visible), then talk you through the repair options before any chargeable work begins.

Burst Pipes & Serious Water Leaks

A burst pipe rarely stays a small problem for long — water finds gaps in flooring, plasterboard and skirting far faster than most people expect, and every extra minute before isolation tends to mean more drying out and redecoration afterwards. Our approach starts with isolation: locating the internal stop tap or an isolation valve closer to the fault, so the flow stops before anything else happens.

From there, an engineer inspects the affected pipework to establish where the failure actually is — which, particularly with concealed or ceiling-void pipework, is not always the same place the water is showing. Once the source is confirmed, we explain the repair options available: a permanent fix where access allows it on the day, or a safe temporary measure with a scheduled follow-up where the damage or access makes an immediate permanent repair impractical. We won't promise a same-visit permanent repair before we've actually seen the pipe — that's a call we make with you once we know what we're dealing with, not a blanket claim on a webpage.

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Overflowing Toilets & Bathroom Fixture Emergencies

An overflowing toilet is one of the most common calls we get, and it's usually fixable without heroics — but the first instinct (flushing again to try to clear it) is often the thing that makes it worse. If your toilet is overflowing, stop flushing, and if you can safely access it, use the isolation valve at the base of the cistern to cut the water supply to that fixture specifically, rather than the whole property.

On site, we check the ballcock, fill valve, flush mechanism, and any visible blockage before opening anything up further. Bathroom and kitchen fixture leaks — under a sink, around a shower tray, or behind a bath panel — follow a similar process: isolate, inspect, then explain what's actually failed before quoting for the fix. Where a repair uncovers a bigger issue, such as water damage that points toward a wider bathroom refurbishment, we'll flag that honestly rather than patch around it.

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Water Near Electrics & Leaking Ceilings

Water tracking down through a ceiling, or appearing anywhere near sockets, switches or light fittings, needs a different first response to a straightforward floor-level leak. If you notice water near electrical equipment, don't touch switches or appliances in the affected area, and where it's safe to do so, isolate power to that circuit at the consumer unit rather than at the fitting itself. This is a safety call first and a plumbing call second — if there's any doubt about electrical safety, that takes priority.

A leaking ceiling is also a case where the visible stain rarely marks the actual source — water travels along joists and pipe runs before it shows, so the wet patch on your ceiling might be some distance from the failed pipe above it. Our engineers trace the run rather than cutting into the first damp patch they see, which usually means less unnecessary opening up of plasterboard.

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Safe First Steps Before We Arrive

While you're waiting for us to confirm arrival, a few safe, source-backed actions can limit the damage:

Locate and use your internal stop tap or stopcock to cut the water supply, where you can safely access it — commonly under the kitchen sink, in an airing cupboard, or near the property's water meter.
Move anything valuable or electrical away from the affected area, without entering a space that feels unsafe.
Catch and contain water with towels, buckets, or a bowl where it's practical to do so.
Turn off your boiler if instructed to during your call, particularly where a burst pipe is on the heating circuit — our team will advise if this applies to your situation.
Take a few photos of the affected area before you start clearing up, in case they're useful for insurance or for our engineer's assessment.

This guidance follows WaterSafe's official advice on burst pipes and Portsmouth Water's leak and pressure guidance. It's general safety information, not a substitute for a professional assessment — if anything feels unsafe, stop and wait for our engineer rather than working through it yourself.

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Process

What Happens When You Call

We know handing your home over to a stranger mid-crisis is a big ask, so here's the process in plain terms:

01

Contact us

By phone or the emergency form, and describe what you're seeing — where the water is, whether you've been able to isolate it, and how it's behaving.

02

We triage the call

Confirming whether it fits our emergency scope and giving you realistic guidance on timing based on current capacity — not a generic promise.

03

An engineer attends

isolates the immediate cause where it hasn't already been done, and inspects the affected pipework or fixture.

04

Explain

We explain what we've found and the repair options, including cost implications, before any chargeable work goes ahead.

05

Approved

Work is carried out and approved by you, with a clear note of what was done — and what, if anything, needs a follow-up visit.

Emergency Plumber Cost & Call-Out Guidance

The honest answer to "how much will this cost" is that it depends on what we find — but the factors that actually move the number are consistent and worth knowing before you call:

Time and timing — whether the call falls inside normal working hours or genuinely out-of-hours
Access — whether the affected pipework is exposed, under a floor, or behind fixed panelling
Diagnosis complexity — a visible leak under a sink is a faster job than tracing a concealed pipe run
Materials — the type and length of pipework, fittings, or the fixture being replaced
Scope of repair — a temporary isolation versus a full permanent fix on the day

We'll always talk through the likely cost drivers on the initial call and confirm the actual price once an engineer has assessed the fault on site — not before. We don't publish a flat call-out fee here because it varies by time and circumstance, but we're upfront about it before any work is approved.

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Coverage

Areas We Cover

Dv Plumbing and Gas Services provides emergency plumbing repair across Portsmouth and the surrounding areas, with our strongest coverage in:

Portsmouth

Southampton

Cosham

Fareham

Waterlooville

Havant

Chichester

Gosport

Whiteley

Petersfield

Emsworth

Hayling Island

Lee-on-the-Solent

Portchester

Cowplain

Clanfield

Denmead

Bosham

Why DV Plumbing

Why Choose Dv Plumbing and Gas Services for Emergency Plumbing Repair

We're a family-run plumbing and gas business with over 40 years of combined experience between us, working across domestic and commercial properties in and around Portsmouth. A few things shape how we handle emergency calls specifically:

We isolate before we diagnose. Stopping active water damage comes first; working out the cause comes second.

We explain before we charge. You'll know what's wrong and what it involves before any repair work is approved.

We don't overstate availability. If we can't get to you as fast as you need, we'll say so rather than promise a window we can't meet.

Fully qualified and insured, with [named reviewer/qualification details to be confirmed] overseeing our safety-critical content and repair standards.

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TESIMONIALS

What Our Customers Say

See how our expert servicing helps customers improve performance, extend system life, and enjoy complete peace of mind.

"Excellent service from start to finish. The engineer arrived on time, completed a thorough service, and explained everything clearly. Our heat pump is now running much more efficiently."

James Walker

"Professional, friendly, and knowledgeable. The annual service was completed quickly, and we now have peace of mind knowing our system is operating safely."

Sarah Collins

"I've used them for servicing multiple properties, and they've always been reliable. Great communication, fair pricing, and high-quality workmanship every time."

Michael Turner

"Very impressed with the attention to detail. They identified a small issue before it became a costly repair, and the whole process was hassle-free."

Emma Richardson

"Outstanding customer service and expert engineers. The servicing was thorough, and our air source heat pump is performing better than ever. Highly recommended."

David Brooks

"Fantastic service from a knowledgeable engineer. The heat pump was thoroughly inspected, cleaned, and tested, and everything was explained in a clear and friendly way. I’ll definitely book my annual service with them again."

Rachel Evans

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TESIMONIALS

What Our Customers Say

See how our expert servicing helps customers improve performance, extend system life, and enjoy complete peace of mind.

"Excellent service from start to finish. The engineer arrived on time, completed a thorough service, and explained everything clearly. Our heat pump is now running much more efficiently."

James Walker

"Professional, friendly, and knowledgeable. The annual service was completed quickly, and we now have peace of mind knowing our system is operating safely."

Sarah Collins

"I've used them for servicing multiple properties, and they've always been reliable. Great communication, fair pricing, and high-quality workmanship every time."

Michael Turner

"Very impressed with the attention to detail. They identified a small issue before it became a costly repair, and the whole process was hassle-free."

Emma Richardson

"Outstanding customer service and expert engineers. The servicing was thorough, and our air source heat pump is performing better than ever. Highly recommended."

David Brooks

"Fantastic service from a knowledgeable engineer. The heat pump was thoroughly inspected, cleaned, and tested, and everything was explained in a clear and friendly way. I’ll definitely book my annual service with them again."