University City Plumber: An Earthquake Checklist for Homes Along Rose Canyon

Rose Canyon cuts University City in two, with the older single-family streets around Governor Drive to the south and UC San Diego and Westfield UTC to the north. The canyon also gives its name to the Rose Canyon fault, part of a fault zone the U.S. Geological Survey describes as active through San Diego, running from La Jolla Bay southeast toward downtown. Nobody can tell you when it will move. You can make sure the plumbing in your house is ready when it does.

Courtesy Plumbing works on homes on both sides of the canyon. Here is what we would check first.

Before the Next Earthquake

Strap the water heater properly. State law (Section 19211 of the Health and Safety Code) says every home water heater in California, old or new, has to be secured so it can’t fall or slide in an earthquake. A loose tank can tip, tear its gas and water lines, and leave you with a flood or a gas leak at the same moment. Look for two metal straps wrapped around the tank and bolted into a stud or masonry, one in the upper part of the tank and one in the lower part. One strap isn’t enough.

Check how the gas reaches your appliances. Look behind the water heater, dryer and range. An approved flexible gas connector can move a little in shaking; a rigid pipe run straight into an appliance has no give. If you see rigid pipe, ask about a flexible connector the next time that appliance is serviced or replaced.

Find your two shutoffs now. The main water valve sits where the supply line comes into the house, usually along the front wall or inside the garage. The gas shutoff is on the pipe beside your gas meter and turns a quarter turn with a wrench, so keep one near the meter. Try the water valve once a year. If it won’t close, have it replaced while nothing is wrong.

Know what your policy covers. A standard homeowner’s policy doesn’t cover earthquake damage, according to Ready.gov, so find out whether you carry separate earthquake coverage.

After the Shaking Stops

1. If you smell gas or hear it hissing, get everyone out, then call SDG&E or 911 from outside. Don’t flip switches on the way. If you close the gas valve at the meter, let the gas company turn it back on.
2. If water is running where it shouldn’t be, close the main water shutoff.
3. Look at the water heater. Is it still upright and strapped, with no water around the base and no gas smell nearby?
4. Walk the house and check under sinks and around toilets for new drips before you run water heavily.

For broken or leaking lines afterward, we handle leak repair in University City and gas line repair. If a drain backs up, Drain Mob is who we send you to.

South of the Canyon: Houses From the 1960s On

University City was planned on about 2,500 acres bought in 1959, first as housing for the new university’s faculty and staff. The south side was built out from the 1960s into the 1980s, mostly as single-family homes. In a house that age, the checklist above can turn up a gate valve at the main that no longer closes or a rigid gas line to an older appliance. Fixing those is ordinary work, and it’s easier on a calm Tuesday than the morning after a quake. If the water heater itself is due, see our page on water heater installation in University City.

Our contractor license number is CSLB #910268. If any of these checks turns up a problem, call (858) 567-0544 between 8 and 5 on a weekday, or describe what you found on our contact page.