Home / Emergency Plumber
24/7 · Tuscaloosa, AL
If a pipe has burst, a toilet is overflowing or sewage is coming up a drain, shut off the main water valve and call (205) 000-0000. We take emergency calls day and night and connect you with a licensed plumber who covers your part of Tuscaloosa.
Do this first
Is it urgent?
Call right away when water or sewage is getting into the house and you can’t stop it. That includes:
A slow drain, a dripping faucet or a toilet that keeps running can usually wait for regular hours. Close the valve under the fixture and call in the morning.
Gas is not a plumbing call first. Get everyone out of the house, don’t flip light switches or use anything that sparks, and call Spire Alabama’s emergency line or 911 from outside. Once the gas company has made it safe, a licensed gas fitter can repair the line.
First five minutes
Find the main shutoff valve before you need it. In most Tuscaloosa homes it’s where the water line comes into the house: in the crawl space, a utility room, the garage or near the water heater. Turn a round handle clockwise until it stops. A lever handle closes when it sits crosswise to the pipe.
If you can’t find a valve inside, the meter box near the street also has one, but it usually needs a meter key. Inside Tuscaloosa city limits you can call the city’s after-hours water line at 205-248-5630.
For a single fixture, use the small valve behind the toilet or under the sink.
Common emergencies
Freeze damage
Shut off the main valve first, then open a faucet at the lowest point in the house to drain the lines. If the leak is near the water heater, turn the heater off: set a gas unit to pilot, or switch off the breaker for an electric one. Move what you can out of the water and take photos for your insurance company.
Don’t thaw a frozen pipe with an open flame. A hair dryer on low or a space heater kept well back from walls and anything flammable is safer, and you can leave the thawing to the plumber if the pipe has already split.
Backups
For a toilet that’s about to overflow, lift the tank lid and push the flapper down, then turn the valve behind the toilet clockwise. That stops the water within seconds.
If sewage comes up in more than one drain, or the tub fills when you flush, stop using water in the house. That pattern usually means the main sewer line is blocked, and every flush adds to the backup. If you’re inside Tuscaloosa city limits, the city’s wastewater line (205-248-5900) can tell you whether the problem is on the city side. Read more about sewer line repair.
Timing and cost
If the damage gets worse by the hour, call now. Water soaks into subfloors, drywall and insulation fast, and drying out a house usually costs more than the repair. If you’ve shut the water off and nothing else is getting wet, waiting for regular hours is often fine.
The cost of an emergency call depends on the time of day, how far the plumber has to drive, what’s broken and how hard it is to reach. Night, weekend and holiday calls are often billed differently, so ask about after-hours terms before the plumber heads out, and get the repair estimate in writing before work starts.
Not urgent?
For water spreading right now, call instead. The form is for problems that can wait an hour.
Questions
Still not sure? Call (205) 000-0000 and describe what you’re seeing.
Service area
We take emergency calls across Tuscaloosa, including Alberta City, Forest Lake, Hillcrest, Taylorville, Glendale Gardens, downtown and the University of Alabama area. We also cover Northport, Cottondale, Coker, Holt and the Lake Tuscaloosa area. Give us your address or ZIP code when you call and we’ll match you with a plumber who works there.
Need a different repair? See all plumbing services in Tuscaloosa.
Shut off the main valve, then call. We’ll connect you with a licensed plumber who takes emergency calls in your part of Tuscaloosa.