Emergency Plumber in Fairfax Station, VA

Signs it can't wait

• Water spreading from a burst pipe, a supply hose or a fitting
• Sewage coming up in a basement drain or lowest toilet
• A puddle under the water heater
• The house losing water entirely
• A pipe in an exterior wall or garage that split in a freeze
• Any odor of gas

Drips and slow drains can wait until a weekday. Anything that keeps wetting floors and walls should be handled tonight.

How things work in Fairfax Station

Fairfax Station is a mostly residential, unincorporated community in southern Fairfax County that grew up around a stop on the Orange and Alexandria Railroad. The median home was built in 1982, and many sit on wooded lots along Ox Road and the Fairfax County Parkway, near Burke Lake Park.

Fairfax County lists Fairfax Water as the water provider for county residents; its customer service line is 703-698-5800, with an automated after-hours option. Fairfax Water owns the meter and its setting. The homeowner owns every pipe on the property, including the service line from the street meter or valve to the main shutoff in the house, so a leak along that run is a plumber's repair.

If your home is connected to the county sewer, Fairfax County's Wastewater Management program runs the public mains and takes backup calls at any hour at 703-323-1211; the owner maintains the private lateral. If you're unsure how your house is served, a recent water and sewer bill will tell you.

Washington Gas serves most of the county. If you smell gas, leave, then call 911 and 844-WASHGAS (844-927-4427), option 1, from outside.

What affects the cost

• Time. Nights, weekends and holidays usually cost more.
• Long service lines. On larger lots, finding a leak between the meter and the house can take longer.
• Permits. Fairfax County requires a permit for gas water heater and furnace replacements even when like-for-like, and new gas piping needs a Residential Plumbing permit.
• Extent of damage. A leak caught early is a simple repair; one that ran for hours may need drying work too.

When you call

You'll be connected with an independent plumber who takes urgent jobs in Fairfax Station. Give the address and a landmark, say whether the main is closed, and ask how after-hours pricing works. No arrival time is promised.