Most hurricane guides stop at preparation. But in our experience responding to every major storm in Lee County since Hurricane Charley in 2004, the most expensive plumbing damage usually happens after the storm — when homeowners turn everything back on before checking what the storm did underground. If you haven't prepped yet, start with our hurricane plumbing preparation guide. If the storm has already passed, work through this checklist in order.
1. Don't Turn the Main Water Back On Yet
If you shut off your main before the storm, leave it off until you've completed the visual checks below. Storm surge, uprooted trees, and shifting soil can crack underground supply lines — and a pressurized line with a hidden break can pump hundreds of gallons under your slab or into your walls before you notice.
2. Walk the Property and Look Down
Before you look at the house, look at the ground. Soggy patches or standing water in spots that usually drain, unusually green stripes of grass, or sunken trenches along the path from the meter to the house are classic signs of a broken service line. Check around the water meter box itself — if the dial is spinning with everything in the house off, water is escaping somewhere between the meter and your fixtures.
3. Check Vent Stacks and the Roof Line
The plumbing vents that poke through your roof keep sewer gases out of your home and let drains flow freely. High winds drive debris — and occasionally shingles — into vent openings. A blocked vent shows up as gurgling drains, slow flushing, or sewer smell inside the house. Don't climb up yourself while shingles are wet; a ground-level look with binoculars is enough to spot damage worth reporting.
4. Inspect the Water Heater Before Re-Energizing
If flood water reached your water heater — even a few inches — do not simply relight it or flip the breaker. Water contaminates gas valves, thermostats, and electrical components, and a damaged unit can be dangerous. Our guide on what to do with your water heater before and after a storm covers this in detail, and our water heater team can assess whether yours is safe to restart.
5. Flush Toilets Once — Then Watch
Municipal sewer systems and lift stations lose power in storms, and surge can push debris into laterals. Flush each toilet once and watch: slow drainage, bubbling in other fixtures, or backflow in tubs and showers means the problem is downstream in the sewer line, and continuing to run water will put sewage on your floors. Stop and call before using more water.
6. Run Taps and Smell the Water
Once the main is back on, run cold taps for a few minutes. Cloudy water usually clears; a persistent sulfur or sewage smell, or grit in the stream, can mean a compromised line drawing in contamination. If your utility has issued a boil-water notice — common across Cape Coral and Fort Myers after major storms — follow it strictly until cleared.
7. Document Everything for Insurance
Photograph standing water, damaged fixtures, water lines on walls, and your meter reading before cleanup. If a plumbing failure caused interior damage, your insurer will want evidence of both the cause and the extent. Our post on how Florida homeowners insurance treats plumbing leaks explains what's typically covered and what to ask your adjuster.
When to Call Us
Spinning meter with the house off, sewage backing up, no water pressure, a flooded water heater, or any soggy-ground signs of a broken underground line — those are same-day calls. C&S Plumbing runs 24/7 storm-response crews across Lee, Collier, and Charlotte counties, and after 28+ years of Southwest Florida storm seasons, we've triaged every one of these situations hundreds of times.
Call 833-PLUMB-IT — or if lines are jammed after a major storm, book online and dispatch will call you back in priority order.
