While most plumbing situations are not an urgent matter, emergency plumbing is a completely different matter. Speed is of the essence in these scenarios, and the quicker a plumber can arrive at your doorstep, the faster the problem can be resolved and the less damage that will happen to your home. With any luck, you most likely won't need to call an emergency plumber very often, but if you see any of the five scenarios outlined below, don't hesitate. Call a 24/7 emergency plumber immediately to handle the situation before it gets any worse.

Sewage Smell

No one likes the smell of sewage in their homes anyways, but if you walk in and smell what smells like a backup inside your home, you need to call a plumber fast. Even a faint sewer smell can be a sign that your sewer drain is backed up, and continuous use can make the problem worse, resulting in major repairs. At the very least, you'll want that smell to go away, which a licensed plumber can help with.

Standing Water

Whether it's in your yard or in your home, standing water is a serious issue. Standing water in your front yard (when it hasn't rained and your sprinklers didn't run), is a possible sign that the lateral drain or the water main under your yard has cracked. Standing water in your home could be a sign of a busted pipe or a burst water heater. Either way, call an emergency plumber before the standing water causes more damage.

Water Stains

Water leaks can happen behind your wall at any point in time, and often go undetected by the homeowner. If you start noticing water stains on your wall, ceiling, or floor, that's a sign that there's a leak behind that wall. Whether it originated there is another issue entirely, but you need to call a 24/7 emergency plumber to find the source and patch it up.

Gushing Water

In some cases, the water won't be a small trickle in the sink or the tub, but a full-on torrent of water that is gushing from a shower head or a broken pipe somewhere. The first thing you should do in that situation is shut off the main water valve, but once that's taken care of, call a plumber to figure out the source of the problem. It may be something small, but in the event that it's caused by a major home issue, you'll want someone that is experienced to tackle the issue.