Jmaster911

Just moving into a new place this weekend and when I went to the house this evenning the water was off. I assume its been turned off at the main tap but unlike in the UK it appears not to be under the sink....any ideas?

paddingtongreen

What kind of a place, house, apartment, etc?

mayhemuk

Often find there is a shut off outside. Might also be turned off at the meter? Are you a house or condo/flat?
Have a look outside.
Potential valves from street to tap. (Still can't say faucet without feeling a dork!)
Meter > External Shut off > Internal Shut off > Individual Tap Isolator.

Good Luck.

penguinsix

Take a walk in the yard. There may be a water meter out there (looks like a manhole cover, but the size of a saucer). That might be where you main tap is located. Or there may be something just inside your garage or under the house (crawlspace).

Tracym

Makes me wonder if the previous water bill hasn't been paid, if it's city water.

Jmaster911

It a ranch style house with no basement, I'm going to ring the city to see if they know anything about it, although the previous tennets only moved out 1 month ago so I suspect it has not been cut off that quick.

Anyway I'll go hunting this morning and see what I can find.

Tracym

Hmmm.. my ranch house would have had it in the basement.

If you can find the meter outside, generally it would be around that location - either inside or outside of the house.

Calling the city is an excellent idea - perhaps the prior tenants just shut it off on purpose, if the house has been vacant, although that would seem odd to me.

Also, if you are renting, you could call the landlord of course. But starting with the city is probably easiest.

Good luck!

mayhemuk

Landlord makes more sense to me. If he/she is local they may have shut off if they new they didn't have a tenant in immediately. Better that than a leak going unnoticed for ages.

Tracym

That's what I was thinking - maybe shut off on purpose.

Not sure if the OP has purchased the house or is renting though.

Duncan Roberts

Mines in a downstairs closet, plus another one outside the house.

SpoogleDrummer

I bought my house last week and had to go and pay a $100 non-refundable deposit to the water company so they'd switch the water on so my guess is there's something they have to do otherwise they wouldn't be able to fleece everyone.

Bill_S

The main valve is going to be near the water meter. Trace the pipes back from your water heater and you'll eventually find it.

Up north, the exterior shutoff will be well below grade; I don't know where it will be in Texas.

Jmaster911

For referance, this is exactly what we had to do!!! The previous tenents must of declared they were going and the city switched off the water. It ony cost $20 but at east we have water now

BritGuyTN

often you can turn the water on yourself as long at the water company have not put a lock on the meter/removed it...

very simple, just need a crescent wrench

dbj1000

A crescent wrench doesn't always do the job. Our main shutoff valve has an design which is intended to be opened with an odd two-pronged tool. At a pinch, it can be operated with a large screwdriver and a lot of force, but the local garden center sells tools specifically for this valve design (common in sprinkler systems) for about $5.