When a pipe bursts, this one valve decides how bad it gets. Watch the 60-second guide, learn your valve, and keep our number where the tape is.
Watch first
A burst pipe pushes gallons into your home every minute. Knowing this one valve is the difference between a mop and a gut renovation.
47 seconds, silent — everything is on screen. The full guide is written out below.
The guide
Step 1 · Find it
In most New Jersey homes the main shutoff sits where the water line enters — next to the meter, along the front foundation wall or in a utility closet. In slab homes, check the garage or a ground-level closet.
Step 2 · Know your valve
A modern ball valve has a straight lever handle. Older homes often have a round gate valve wheel next to the meter.
Step 3 · Shut it down
Quarter-turn the lever until it sits perpendicular to the pipe. Wheel valves: turn clockwise until hand-tight — never force a stuck valve with a wrench. Then open a low faucet to drain pressure, and call us.
Then call
Once the main is closed the emergency stops getting worse — and that's our cue. A dispatcher answers 24/7, and our guarantee is on site within 90 minutes of your emergency call or $50 off. The $79 diagnostic is credited to the repair.
Want the valve found, tested and tagged before you ever need it? That's part of every Rescue Club tune-up.
Straight answers
Do not force it — old gate valves can snap. Close the curb-stop question is for the water utility; call us at (866) 737-2830 and shut off your water heater if the leak is on the hot side.
Look in the garage, a ground-floor utility closet, or a crawl-space access near the street-facing side. Some homes only have the meter-pit shutoff outside, which needs a meter key.
It stops water coming in from the street. Water already in pipes, tanks and the water heater still drains — open a low faucet to empty the lines faster.
Yes. During Rescue Club tune-ups ($19/month) we test your main shutoff and tag it so anyone in the house can find it in seconds. Ask for the valve check on any visit.
