Since 2010
Emergency plumber in Pontefract
If you have a burst pipe, water coming through a ceiling or a leak you cannot stop, call us on 01924 266211 and we will answer immediately.
While you wait for us to get there, find your problem in the list below.
There are a couple of things you can do in the meantime that will stop the damage getting worse.
We have been the emergency plumber in Pontefract for homeowners, landlords and letting agents since 2010.
We are accredited by the Federation of Master Builders, and we cover Pontefract, Knottingley, Castleford, Featherstone, Ackworth, Darrington and Wakefield at any hour.
Answered out of hours, every hour
You know the price before we start
A written price before any work begins, agreed with you. No day rates quoted over the phone, no extras appearing on the invoice.
Plumbing, electrics and roofing, one contractor
A leak that has taken out the lights needs a plumber and an electrician. You call once and we send both, rather than you chasing two trades.
Who we work with
Homes, rentals and commercial property in Pontefract and surrounding areas.
The same trades, the same standards and the same written pricing whether it is a family home, a rental portfolio or a commercial building.
Homeowners
Repairs, replacements and improvements. Priced clearly before we start.
- ✓ Every trade under one contractor
- ✓ Free written quotes, no obligation
- ✓ All work fully guaranteed
Landlords and letting agents
Tenanted property looked after without you having to be there.
- ✓ Direct contact with your tenant
- ✓ Photographs and sign-off on every job
- ✓ Gas and electrical certification
Commercial and healthcare
Maintenance and repairs planned around the people using the building.
- ✓ Out of hours attendance
- ✓ Work planned around occupants
- ✓ 24/7 emergency cover, 365 days
Below is what to do for the most common emergencies, who to ring when it is not a plumber’s job, and how our out of hours line works.
What to do right now
Water coming through a ceiling
Turn the water off at the internal stopcock, usually under the kitchen sink.
Then go to the consumer unit and switch off the lighting circuit for the room below, because water getting into a light fitting can give someone a shock.
Put a bucket under the worst of it.
If the ceiling is bulging, pierce the lowest point of the bulge with a screwdriver and let it drain into the bucket.
A small hole is much cheaper to patch than a ceiling that has come down.
A burst or split pipe
Stopcock off, then open every cold tap downstairs to drain the system and drop the pressure at the split.
Do not wrap it in tape, if you cannot reach the stopcock or it will not turn, there is normally an external stop tap under a small cover near the boundary or the pavement.
No water at all
Before you assume it is your pipework, check whether your neighbours have water too.
If the whole street is dry, it is a mains issue and Yorkshire Water will already know.
If it is only you, check your internal stopcock has not been knocked closed, then check the external one.
In cold weather, no water from one tap while others still run usually means a frozen section rather than a supply failure.
A toilet or drain backing up into the house
Stop using every tap, toilet, shower and appliance in the house straight away.
Anything you run has nowhere to go, so it comes back up out of the nearest plughole or toilet.
If it is happening at more than one sink or toilet at the same time, the blockage is further along the pipe, past the point where everything in the house joins together.
That usually means a shared drain, which is Yorkshire Water's responsibility rather than yours.
If more than one sink or toilet is affected, it is worth reading blocked drains in Pontefract before you pay anybody, because a shared drain is usually Yorkshire Water’s responsibility rather than yours.
A leak near electrics
Kill the circuit at the consumer unit before anything else, and do not stand in water to do it.
If the consumer unit itself is wet, or you are not sure which circuit is affected, turn off the main switch and call us.
Water and electrics together is the one combination worth being genuinely cautious about.
No heating or hot water in a cold snap
Not an emergency in a normal week.
It is one if the property has an elderly or vulnerable occupant, a baby, or the temperature is low enough that pipes are at risk.
Tell us that when you call and we will treat it accordingly.
Emergencies that are not a plumber's job
Some of the calls we get should go somewhere else first, and sending you to the right place faster is more useful to you than attending and telling you in person.
| What is happening | Who to call first |
|---|---|
| A smell of gas | National Gas Emergency Service 0800 111 999 |
| A power cut, or electrics tripping with no obvious cause | National power cut line 105 |
| No water across the whole street | Yorkshire Water |
| Water coming up through a road or pavement | Yorkshire Water |
| A shared drain backing up across several houses | Yorkshire Water |
| A blocked road gully or surface water drain | Wakefield Council |
If you smell gas, do not switch anything on or off, open the windows, get everybody out, and ring 0800 111 999 before you ring us.
Is it an emergency, or can it wait until morning?
Out of hours work costs more everywhere, including here.
Some of these calls genuinely cannot wait and some will cost you less if they do.
| Problem | Our honest answer |
|---|---|
| Burst pipe, water you cannot stop | Call now |
| Water through a ceiling or light fitting | Call now |
| Sewage backing up into the property | Call now |
| No water at all in the property | Call now |
| Toilet blocked and it is the only toilet | Call now |
| Dripping tap | Morning |
| One slow drain, still moving | Morning |
| Running toilet you can isolate at the valve | Morning |
| One radiator cold | Morning |
| No hot water, mild weather, nobody vulnerable in the house | Morning |
Not sure which yours is? Ring us anyway and we will tell you honestly. If it can wait until morning you will pay less, and we would rather say so than charge you for a callout you did not need.
How our out of hours emergency plumber service works
If you have searched for an emergency plumber near me, or an out of hours plumber near me, the thing you actually want to know is whether someone picks up.
We will. We are not an answering service taking a message for the morning, and not a call centre in another city passing your job on to whoever is nearest and cheapest.
What we will ask you on the phone
Having these ready makes the call shorter:
Your postcode and the access situation, including parking and whether anyone can let us in
What you can actually see, in plain terms, water, sewage, damp patch, no water at all
Whether the water is off at the stopcock yet, and if not, whether you can find it
Whether anything electrical is involved
Whether the property is tenanted, and who we should be dealing with
Safety first, repairs second
On an emergency call the first job is always to stop the damage from getting worse.
Isolate the supply, contain what is leaking, and make the area safe.
Only then do we look at the repair, and if the proper repair needs a part we do not have on the van, we will make it safe, tell you plainly what it needs, and come back rather than bodging it so the call can be closed.
What an emergency plumber callout costs
You will be told what the callout is before we set off, not after we arrive.
Any work beyond attending and making safe gets priced and agreed with you before it starts. No day rates quoted vaguely over the phone, and nothing appearing on the invoice you did not agree to.
Quotes for the follow-up work are free and carry no obligation, and all our work is guaranteed.
How we price everything else, from a dripping tap to a full bathroom, is on our plumbing services in Pontefract page.
Emergencies in rented property
If you let property, a plumbing emergency is somebody else’s job to be in for and your job to pay for. You are not there, the tenant is, and you still need proof of what was done afterwards.
Under section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, keeping the water, drainage, heating and hot water in working order is your responsibility rather than the tenant’s, and it cannot be signed away in the tenancy agreement. Leave a real emergency and it stops being a plumbing problem and becomes a legal one.
How we work with it:
The tenant can call us directly and we will attend, with the landlord or agent authorising the work
We deal with the tenant for access so the landlord is not acting as a switchboard at 1am
Photographs and a written sign-off on every job, which is what an agent needs for their file and what a landlord needs if there is a deposit dispute later
The same out of hours cover applies, because tenants have emergencies at weekends like everyone else
If you are a letting agent with several properties across Pontefract, Knottingley, Castleford or Wakefield, it is usually worth a conversation before the first emergency rather than during it.
Water damage and your insurance
Escape of water is one of the most common household insurance claims there is, and the difference between a smooth claim and a painful one is almost always what you did in the first hour.
Worth doing:
Photograph everything before anyone starts work, including the source if you can see it and all the damage
Keep the failed part. A split section of pipe or a failed valve is evidence
Get the repair quoted in writing, which your insurer will ask for
Tell your insurer promptly, even if you are not sure yet whether you will claim
Do not throw away damaged carpet, flooring or belongings until you have been told you can
Most policies expect you to take reasonable steps to limit the damage, which is one more reason the stopcock matters more than the plumber's arrival time.
Where we cover, 24 hours a day
We are based at The Stables, Queens Avenue, Pontefract, WF8 4SF, and we attend emergencies across Pontefract, Knottingley, Castleford, Featherstone, Ackworth, Darrington and Wakefield.
If you have searched for a 24 hour emergency plumber near me from any of those towns, we are a local firm with a real address a short drive away, not a national number that passes your job on to whoever is available.
Stopping the same emergency happening twice
A lot of what we get called out to in January could have been avoided with an hour’s work in October.
Find your stopcock on a quiet afternoon and check it actually turns. Tell everyone in the house where it is
Lag the pipework in the loft, the garage and anywhere clipped to an outside wall
Make sure the loft insulation runs over the top of your pipes rather than under them, so the pipes stay on the warm side
Fit isolating valves under sinks and behind the toilet, so next time you can shut off one fitting instead of the whole house
Turn the outside tap off at its internal valve and drain it before winter
Know where your water meter is and what the reading looks like normally, so a hidden leak shows up early.
Most of this is covered in more detail on our burst pipe repair in Pontefract page, including why a pipe that froze in January often does not leak until the thaw.
Need a plumber?
Tell us what is wrong and we will come back to you with a free written quote.
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FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Clear, honest answers to the things people ask us most. If you can’t find what you need, just get in touch - we’re happy to help.