A Household Plumbing Check Before Leaving Your Home Empty

1. Look at accessible fittings before packing up

Start with places you can see without removing panels, pulling out appliances or disturbing pipework. Open an ordinary cupboard door if it is safe, look around the fittings and note anything different from normal. Avoid tightening joints, dismantling a cistern or running more water to recreate a leak.

On a narrow screen, scroll the table sideways to read all three columns.

Thames Water identifies trickling, rippling or flowing water at the back of the toilet bowl as a sign of a possible toilet leak. Its leak-identification guidance [1] provides further context. The purpose here is to notice and report a symptom, not diagnose a failed component.

2. Give every unresolved concern an action

Keep a short record with three headings: what you noticed, who is dealing with it, and what remains outstanding. “Kitchen cupboard wet; plumber contacted; assessment pending” is more useful than marking the kitchen as checked. A booking request alone does not mean a repair has been completed.

If water is visibly escaping from an accessible pipe or joint, ask for help with pipe leak repair. If the source is uncertain, describe the location without naming a failed part. For help choosing the initial enquiry, see Leak, Drip or Blockage: Which Plumbing Service Do You Need?

Tell the provider when the property will become empty and who can grant access. After any visit, clarify what was repaired, what could not be checked and whether further work is needed. Do not treat a targeted repair as a survey of all concealed pipework.

If you find an active escape of water

Stop the routine checklist and seek urgent plumbing help. If you know which valve isolates your own supply and can reach and operate it safely, turn the water off without forcing the valve. Notify the building contact promptly if other flats or communal areas may be affected.

If water is affecting electrical equipment, keep clear of exposed wiring and do not use affected mains-powered equipment. Electrical Safety First advises switching off at the consumer unit only when safe and having affected electrics assessed by a registered electrician. Follow its electrical safety guidance [3]; do not approach wet electrical equipment to complete this checklist.

3. Confirm the water-supply arrangements

Know where your inside stop valve is and which supply it controls before you need it. Thames Water notes that flats may have a communal valve and, sometimes, a separate valve for the individual flat. Do not assume the first valve you find serves only your home. Its inside stop valve guidance [2] explains common locations and warns against excessive force.

If you cannot identify the correct valve, it is inaccessible or it appears faulty, ask a plumber or the building manager to clarify the arrangement before departure. Keep normal access to the confirmed valve clear. A photograph of its location can help an authorised person find it later, but a photograph alone does not establish what it controls.

Decide with the appropriate adviser whether your property's water supply should remain on or be isolated during your absence. Explain any equipment that needs a water supply and follow the relevant manufacturer's instructions. Do not apply a blanket shut-off instruction to an unfamiliar system or a shared supply.

This household check does not cover draining down systems, winterising a vacant building, gas appliances or boiler settings. If your absence requires those arrangements, obtain separate advice appropriate to the property and equipment.

4. Leave a practical contact and access plan

Agree the plan with the people involved rather than simply leaving a number on the worktop. For a rented home, ask the landlord or managing agent which contact and repair-authorisation process to use. For a managed block, include the building's own contact route. Check any absence conditions in your actual tenancy or insurance documents rather than assuming a universal inspection interval.

• Reachable contact: who can be contacted while you are away, with a backup if necessary.
• Authorised access: who holds a working key or can admit a tradesperson, and how access will be arranged securely.
• Known concerns: the location of outstanding problems, recent repairs and any follow-up already agreed.
• Water-supply information: the confirmed valve location and any property-specific instructions provided by the responsible adviser.
• Response arrangements: who contacts the plumber or building manager and who can agree the next step.

If a trusted person will visit, agree what they should look for and how they should report a concern. Their role can be limited to safe observation; they should not dismantle fittings, force valves or investigate water near electrics. Confirm they have accepted the arrangement before relying on it.

5. Make one final departure check

Revisit the accessible areas you checked earlier. Look for new wetness, make sure ordinary taps have been shut normally, and confirm that any agreed repair or follow-up has actually taken place. Follow the property-specific water-supply plan you established, rather than changing unfamiliar controls at the last minute.

Send the agreed contact person the current information securely and confirm how they can reach you. If something has changed since a plumber's visit, report the new observation. A dry surface at departure is reassuring only for what is visible at that moment; it is not proof that a hidden fault cannot develop.