Emergency plumber in Ottawa for burst pipes, floods and sewer backups
If water is coming through a ceiling or up through a floor drain, shut off the main valve, then call. Say what is happening and you will hear how soon a plumber can be at your door.
What counts as a plumbing emergency
Some problems cannot wait for a booked visit, because every minute adds to the damage or puts someone at risk. These are the ones to call about straight away.
What to do in the first five minutes
What you do before the plumber arrives decides how much there is to repair afterwards.
Shut off the water
Close the main valve, usually in the basement on the wall facing the street, beside the meter. A lever turns a quarter turn. A round wheel turns clockwise until it stops.
Make the area safe
If water is near outlets or appliances, switch off the breaker for that part of the house, but only if you can reach the panel without standing in water.
Drain what is left in the pipes
Open a cold tap on the lowest floor and one upstairs. This empties the lines so the leak stops feeding itself.
Protect what you can
Move furniture, electronics and boxes out of the way and put buckets or towels under the leak.
Take photos, then call
Pictures of the leak and the damage help with an insurance claim later. Then call 613-820-5583.
What happens when the plumber arrives
The first job is to stop the water and make the house safe. That may be a permanent repair on the spot, or a temporary one that gets your water back on while parts are sourced.
Before any permanent work starts, you are told what failed, what it will take to fix and what it will cost. If the leak has soaked floors, walls or insulation, the plumber will tell you what needs drying or opening up so you can pass that on to your insurer.
One thing a plumber cannot help with is a smell of gas. Leave the house and call 911 or your gas utility's emergency line from outside.
Why Ottawa homes flood when they do
Emergency calls in Ottawa follow the calendar. In January and February it is frozen pipes in outside walls, garages and crawl spaces, which split as the ice expands and start leaking when they thaw. In April the snow melts faster than the ground can take it, sump pumps run around the clock, and the ones that fail let groundwater into the basement.
In summer, a heavy storm can fill the sewers faster than they drain, and the water comes back up through basement floor drains. The older parts of the city add their own risks all year: galvanized and cast iron pipes that have been thinning from the inside for decades.
If your basement floods from the sewer
The City of Ottawa has a Compassionate Grant of up to $1,000 for residents whose basement floods because of a sewer backup, to help with cleanup or replacement costs. It also offers rebates for backwater valves and sump pumps that prevent the next one. City flooding rebates and grant
Amount from the City's website in November 2026. Check the City's page for current rules.
What an emergency call costs
There is no single price for emergency work, because the same wet ceiling can come from a loose fitting or a failed pipe run. These are the things that affect it.
Questions people ask
Should I call the plumber or my insurance company first?
Stop the water first. Close the main valve, call the plumber, and then call your insurer. Take photos before anything is moved or repaired, and keep the failed part if the plumber replaces one.
Is a frozen pipe an emergency?
Yes. A frozen pipe has not leaked yet, but it is under pressure and may already be split. Leave the tap open, warm the pipe gently with a hair dryer starting from the tap end, never use a flame, and call if you cannot find or reach the frozen section.
Can I use the toilet or run water during a sewer backup?
No. Everything you send down a drain will come back up at the lowest point in the house, which is usually the basement floor drain. Stop using water until the line is cleared.
What if the problem is on the City's side?
You are responsible for the water and sewer pipes from your house to the property line, and the City of Ottawa is responsible beyond it. If the trouble is in the street, such as a broken water main or a blocked City sewer, call 3-1-1.
Other work The Ottawa Plumber does
For everything else, from dripping taps to re-piping, see the main page for a plumber in Ottawa.
Tell us what the water is doing
613-820-5583Calling is fastest when something is leaking. For anything that can wait a day, send the form and you will get a call back.