Our office phones roll to a 24-hour answering service at 4 p.m. on weekdays, and from Friday afternoon straight through Monday morning. The answering service takes down your information and immediately texts the technician who is on call that day. That technician calls you back directly, not a call center, so you are talking to the plumber who is actually coming to your house. On that call they will ask what is happening, tell you anything you can do right away to limit damage, and give you a realistic arrival window based on where they are and what they are finishing. You decide from there whether that window works for your situation.
While you wait, a few minutes of action can limit damage. First, find your main water shut-off. In most Bend homes it is in the garage, crawl space, or near the water meter at the street; turn it clockwise until it stops. For a single fixture, use the small valve under the sink or behind the toilet. Second, cut power to any outlets or appliances near standing water at the breaker panel, not at the outlet. Third, if the water heater is leaking, close the cold-water valve on top of the tank and, for gas units, turn the gas control to "off." Fourth, move rugs, furniture, and stored items away from the water and start drying; the faster surfaces dry, the less chance of mold. Do not pour chemical drain cleaners into a fully blocked drain; they sit in the pipe and can injure the plumber who opens it.
When our technician arrives, they will inspect the problem, explain your options, and give you a written flat-rate price before any work starts. That price does not change if the job takes longer than expected.
