How do I shut off the water to just one fixture?

An angle stop is the little shutoff valve where the water supply line comes out of the wall or floor and turns to feed a fixture. The name comes from its shape: water enters from one direction and exits at a 90-degree angle, heading up to the faucet, toilet, or appliance. You may also hear it called a fixture stop, a supply stop, or simply an angle valve. They do the same job.

These valves exist so you can isolate one fixture. Plumbing code builds this idea into the design of a home's water system. The International Plumbing Code (IPC) in Chapter 6 calls for shutoff valves on the supply piping so individual parts of the system can be closed for repair without draining everything. That is why a fix to one toilet does not have to leave the kitchen and showers dry.

There are two common types. An older multi-turn stop has a small round or oval handle you spin several times to open or close, like a tiny outdoor spigot. A newer quarter-turn ball stop has a lever or flat handle; a single quarter turn goes from fully open to fully closed. Both shut off water to the fixture. Knowing which kind you have changes how you operate it, and a worn multi-turn stop is the type most likely to give you trouble, which the caution section below covers.

Shutting off the right fixture also limits damage during a small emergency. EPA WaterSense reports that household leaks waste nearly 1 trillion gallons of water nationally each year, and the average home loses more than 9,300 gallons annually to leaks. Closing a single stop the moment a supply line drips stops that loss at the source while you get a repair done.

The fixture stop is almost always close to the thing it serves. Once you know the pattern, you can spot it in seconds.

• Under a sink: Look at the back wall of the cabinet under a bathroom or kitchen sink. You will usually see two valves on the supply lines running up to the faucet, one for hot and one for cold. Close one or both. A toilet-style sink with a single supply will have just one.
• At a toilet: Follow the supply line down from the bottom-left of the tank. The stop sits where that line meets the wall behind the toilet or the floor at its base. A toilet has one supply line, so there is one valve.
• Behind a washing machine: Pull the washer out a few inches and look at the hookups. There are usually two valves, hot and cold, sometimes joined by a single lever that closes both at once.
• At the water heater: A shutoff valve sits on the cold-water inlet at the top of the tank. Closing it stops water feeding the heater without touching the rest of the house.

Faucets and toilets are the fixtures most people shut off, and they account for a large share of indoor water use. EPA WaterSense notes that standard bathroom faucets flow at up to 2.2 gallons per minute, so even a steady drip from a fixture you have isolated adds up fast if left alone. Getting to the right stop quickly is what keeps a small repair small.

Once you have found the valve, closing it takes only a few seconds. The direction follows the classic rule: righty-tighty to close, lefty-loosey to open.

For a multi-turn stop, turn the round handle clockwise and keep turning until it stops. It may take several full turns. Do not crank hard at the end; snug is enough to stop the flow.

For a quarter-turn ball stop, turn the lever a quarter turn so it sits crosswise to the pipe. When the handle lines up with the pipe, the valve is open; when it sits at a right angle to the pipe, it is closed. One smooth quarter turn fully closes it.

After closing the valve, open the fixture to confirm the water is off. Turn on the faucet or flush the toilet once. The flow should drop to a trickle and then stop. A toilet tank should not refill. If water keeps coming, the stop is not fully closed or is not holding, and you should move to the main shutoff instead. When you finish the repair, reopen the valve slowly and check the connections for drips before you walk away.

It helps to keep a towel and a small bowl handy. Even a closed stop leaves a little water in the line above it, so opening the faucet or disconnecting a supply line will release that leftover water. Catching it keeps the cabinet floor dry and lets you see clearly whether the valve is truly holding. If you plan to remove a supply line, have a wrench sized for the fitting ready before you start, and turn fittings gently to avoid twisting the stop itself.

Not every fixture has its own valve. The most common exception is the tub and shower. Many tubs and showers have no accessible shutoff at the fixture itself, because the valve body is sealed inside the wall. In those cases you cannot isolate the shower the way you can a sink or toilet.

When a fixture has no local stop, you use the main water shutoff for the home instead. That valve closes water to the whole house, so plan the work before you turn it off. For step-by-step help finding and operating it, see our guide on the main water shutoff. Outdoor hose bibs, older second sinks, and some built-in appliances can also lack a dedicated stop, so check first rather than assuming.

Knowing this in advance matters during an emergency. Emergency-preparedness agencies treat the main valve as the household's first line of defense against water damage. Ready.gov advises homeowners to locate the main shutoff and learn how to use it before trouble hits, stating in its water guidance: "Locate the shut-off valve for the water line that enters your house and label it so you can find it easily." The American Red Cross likewise lists shutting off the water supply among the first steps when dealing with a flooded home. If a fixture without a local stop starts leaking, the main is what you reach for.

The worst time to go looking for a shutoff is while water is spraying across the floor. A few minutes spent now locating every fixture stop and the main valve turns a panic into a quick, calm fix later.

One important caution applies to older valves. Multi-turn stops that have not been touched in years can corrode and seize. Mineral buildup, common in hard-water areas like Phoenix, locks the handle in place. If you force a stuck stop, it can break or leak right when you need it most, leaving you with two problems instead of one. So if a stop will not turn with reasonable hand pressure, do not force it. Use the main shutoff to kill water to the home, then have the failed stop replaced. Many homeowners use a planned repair as the moment to swap aging multi-turn stops for quarter-turn ball stops, which are far less likely to seize.

It also helps to test your stops once a year. Gently open and close each one so the valve stays free, and listen for any drip afterward. While you are at it, confirm the main valve turns smoothly. If you discover a leak you cannot trace or a valve that will not cooperate, our pages on a leak under the sink and what to do while waiting for a plumber walk you through the next steps. A little familiarity with these small valves is the difference between a five-minute repair and water damage you are mopping up for days.