At our May training on Utilities and Sanitation, Kent Fisher shared the following information. For a summary of the complete training, please click HERE. The following is a quick reference guide to shutting off utilities in an emergency:
Water Shutoff –
Horizontal handle indicates water is turned on. 1/4 turn to the right will shut it off.
Gas – Found on the outside of the home. Requires a special wrench to turn off. Click HERE to order the wrench. NOTE: Only shut off gas if you smell a leak. It could be weeks or even a month before the gas company could turn your gas back on.
Power – The power to the entire house can be shut off outside, as indicated in the following picture. – Or –
Power can also be shut off through individual breakers inside the home:
Water Heater – Be sure to secure your water heater to the wall. You can also shut off the gas to the water heater without turning off the gas to your entire home (red handle below)
Furnace – Note that you can shut off the power and the gas to your furnace. The red handle indicates that the gas is on when vertical, and off when turned horizontal.
Plumbing and Sewage – Stopping the drains inside the toilet bowl, tank, shower drain, floor and tub drains, and any sinks in your basement may be necessary during an emergency if the sewage lines have been disturbed. See the Utilities Handout for solutions. The images below show the open flap inside of a toilet tank that must be stopped up to prevent sewage backflow.
Floor, Tub, and Shower Drains – can be stopped by blow up balls (see handout) . Special wrench required (Plumbing Supply Store such as Mountain States Plumbing Supply in Layton, Utah)
Sinks – can be plugged with a flood guard (see handout)
and a Backflow Diverter can be installed ($12-1800. See handout.)
