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My neighbour got a sparks in last week to run a new cable from his CU to his range cooker. They took a plunge saw to his floorboards and managed to cut through two water pipes. Unfortunately he didn’t know where his stop cock was. Fortunately the sparks knew a plumber, who came round with a pump and somehow managed to effect a repair and install a new stop cock. Much flooding.
Sharkstar-
Just in case anyone finds themselves facing this problem in the future:-
When you can't find the stopcock and you've finished running around like a headless chicken! Bend the ends of the pipe over. Smash them flat with a hammer first if you have to but basically flatten and bend the pipes to reduce or stop the flow.
Clearly you should always locate the stopcock in your own home before you or anyone else cuts through any floorboards though and check that you can operate it especially if its an old one in the street. If it's the old type in the street it's worth calling the water board and having it changed before you need it to work.
Airhead
My family are disappointedly unaware of even where the CU is. Or where the gas/electricity/water meters are. Or where the water shut off is. Even though I keep trying to show them to them in case it is needed.