Emergency Plumber in Houston: Night and Weekend Rates, CenterPoint Numbers and Storm Steps

What emergency repairs cost in Houston

The figures below start from national emergency rates and apply Houston's construction cost factor of 0.82 from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Estimates for 2026, including labor and standard parts. Houston prices use the metro's construction cost factor of 0.82 (US average = 1.00) from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Area Cost Factors. Your quote depends on access, materials and the condition of the home.

How the time of the call changes the rate

HomeGuide breaks emergency plumbing rates down by when you call (HomeGuide). Adjusted to Houston, hourly labor before the service fee and parts comes to:

Most emergency plumbers also charge a service call fee, about $125 to $205 at Houston prices. For electricians, Angi says emergency work in Houston runs about twice the standard rate.

What common emergencies cost to fix

Pipes under a slab, inside a wall or up in the attic take longest to reach and cost the most. Drying, drywall and flooring are billed on their own. Everyday plumbing prices, licensing and Houston's sewer cleanout test are in our Houston plumbing guide.

The first hour: what to do

Water is spreading

Close the main water shutoff. In the City of Houston, the City owns the service line from the main to the meter, and the line from the meter into the house belongs to you. Switch off the breakers for any room where water is reaching outlets or appliances, and take photos before you start cleaning. If water is gushing from the street or the meter box, report it to 311.

You smell gas

Get out of the house on foot first, and do not flip switches or use a phone near the smell. Once outside, call CenterPoint at 888-876-5786 and 911 (CenterPoint). If anyone has to dig to reach a buried line, call 811 first so the utilities can mark theirs.

The power is out or a line is down

Assume every downed line is live and call CenterPoint at 713-207-2222. Parts of The Woodlands and Montgomery County get power from Entergy Texas instead. Inside, a hot panel, a smoking outlet or a burning smell means you shut off the main breaker if you can reach it without standing in water, get out and call 911.

Who to call in greater Houston

Which trade handles which emergency

Calling the right trade first saves a second service fee.

Our Houston electrician guide and Houston roofing guide cover those trades in detail.

Freezes

Freezing nights are few in Houston. Bush Intercontinental averages about 10 a year at or below 32°F, and Hobby about 4. Winter Storm Uri was far colder: IAH fell to 13°F on February 16, 2021. Frozen and burst pipes, together with failing infrastructure, pushed the City's water pressure below 20 psi, the level that triggers a boil water advisory under state rules, and the advisory stayed in place until February 21 (Houston Public Media).

When a freeze is forecast, find the main shutoff, wrap exposed outdoor pipes and learn how to drain your water heater. If a pipe freezes, close the main before it thaws, because a split pipe starts leaking the moment the ice melts. For a house that will sit unheated, FEMA's advice is to shut off the main, open every faucet, drain the water heater and flush the toilets.

Floods

Flooding in Harris County is frequent and widespread. Hurricane Harvey flooded an estimated 154,170 homes in 2017. The Tax Day Flood of 2016 reached about 9,820 structures, and the Memorial Day Flood of 2015 more than 6,000 (HCFCD). During Hurricane Beryl in 2024, two people in Harris County died after driving into floodwater. Stay out of moving or standing water, on foot and in a car.

Once water is in the house:

• Close the gas valve to any appliance that flooded up to its burners. FEMA says a water heater should be replaced if floodwater reached its burner, controls or insulation (FEMA P-234).
• Photograph everything, then remove standing water and start drying.
• Keep an eye out for mold. In Texas, mold covering 25 contiguous square feet or more calls for a licensed remediation contractor and a state notification. Owners of buildings with fewer than 10 units may clean up their own property (TDLR).

Hurricanes and long outages

Hurricane Beryl made landfall on July 8, 2024. The National Weather Service reports that outages in Harris County peaked at around 2.7 million people, and that more than a million were still without power four days later (NWS). Two of the county's indirect deaths came from carbon monoxide poisoning from generator use. Across Texas, roughly 400 people went to emergency rooms for carbon monoxide poisoning after Beryl, the highest count since the 2021 winter storm (Texas Tribune).

Keep a portable generator outdoors, well away from windows and doors, and never run it inside the house or the garage. A permanent standby generator needs electrical and plumbing permits in Houston, as our electrician guide explains. Most tankless water heaters also need power to run, so plan for them before hurricane season starts.

Can a plumber fix it without a permit in Houston?

For some emergency work, yes. Houston's amendments to the 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code exempt stopping leaks in drain, waste and vent pipes, clearing stoppages, and repairing leaks in pipes, valves or fixtures, provided nothing is replaced or rearranged (Houston UPC amendments). Once a section of pipe has to come out and be replaced with new material, the code treats it as new work, with a permit and an inspection. A water heater replacement always needs a permit. If work that needed a permit is found without one, the City charges an investigation fee equal to the permit fee.

Insurance: what to record

According to the Texas Department of Insurance, most homeowner and renters policies cover sudden and accidental water damage, such as a burst pipe, an overflowing toilet or a broken washer hose, but usually not gradual leaks (TDI). Home policies do not cover flooding. FEMA notes that a new flood policy usually has a 30-day waiting period (FEMA), so it has to be in place before the storm.

TDI's steps after damage (TDI):

1. Take photos and video, and keep damaged items until the adjuster says you can throw them out.
2. Make temporary repairs that stop further damage, like removing standing water and covering holes.
3. List every repair and save the receipts.
4. Wait for the adjuster to see the damage before making permanent repairs.
5. Ask whether your policy pays living expenses if you have to stay elsewhere.

Ask the plumber for an invoice that names the cause, and hold on to the failed part.

Price gouging and checking the pro

Once the Governor or the President declares a disaster, Texas law makes it illegal to charge exorbitant or excessive prices for necessities, building materials and construction tools included (Texas Attorney General). A high price by itself is not gouging. Report suspected cases to the Attorney General's office.

Before anyone starts work:

1. Get the license number and look it up on the TSBPE search for plumbers or the TDLR search for electricians and A/C contractors.
2. Ask for the service fee and hourly rate before the visit, and get the repair price in writing before work begins.
3. Avoid handing over the full price in cash up front.

Our payment protection guide explains how milestone payments work on bigger repairs.

Areas we cover

GOLDGCP's 24/7 line takes emergency calls across greater Houston:

• Houston
• Katy and Cypress
• Sugar Land and Pearland
• Pasadena
• The Woodlands and Conroe

Enter your ZIP code below to see emergency pros and prices for your area.