Emergency shut off valves are important for plumbing because they can help prevent catastrophic water damage in the event of a plumbing emergency. Emergency shut off valves enable someone to quickly turn off the water supply to a designated area whether it’s a faucet, water heater, or the entire home. When used during a flood, these shut off valves will greatly reduce the amount of damage caused by water. By shutting off the water supply as quickly as possible, you can stop water from freely flowing into your carpet or hard wood floors.

In addition to being able to control water due to a faulty shower valve or leaky pipe emergency, shut off valves make fixing your plumbing challenge a breeze. By being able to isolate the problem at hand, most competent plumbers will be able to come in and make the repair without having to turn off your entire water system.

Overall, emergency shut off valves are an integral part of your plumbing system and help protect your home from water damage. Next time you are cleaning out underneath your sink, look at the back wall and you’ll notice two silver angular shut off‘s, either quarter turn or multi turn with two stainless steel, braided flex lines running up to your faucet. Those are what hold back water when your faucet fails.