By Project Genie Admin ·
September 3, 2026
Home emergencies never happen at a convenient time. This guide covers what to do — safely, and in the right order — for the home-systems emergencies Project Genie actually helps with: plumbing, HVAC, electrical, pest, and storm or roof damage. It does not cover medical emergencies, fires, or gas leaks — those need 911 or your utility company, not a home-service pro, and we'll flag exactly where that line is below.
Bookmark this page. The middle of an emergency is a bad time to be searching for what to do — knowing the first few steps ahead of time, for whichever system fails first, is what actually keeps a bad situation from becoming a worse one.
The First 3 Things to Do in Any Home Emergency
Whatever the specific problem, the same three steps apply first:
Make sure everyone's safe. Get people and pets away from the immediate problem — standing water near outlets, a smell you can't identify, anything visibly sparking or smoking.
Shut off the source, if you can do it safely. Water at the main valve, power at the breaker for that area, or the specific appliance involved. If reaching the shut-off means walking through water or getting near something you're not sure is safe, don't — skip to step 3.
Get a professional on the way. Once the immediate risk is contained, the fastest fix is getting a licensed pro who's actually available, not calling company after company hoping someone picks up.
The sections below go trade-by-trade into what "safely" and "shut off the source" actually mean for each type of emergency. One habit worth building into all of them: once things are stable, take a few photos before you start cleaning up or moving anything. If you end up filing an insurance claim, having that documentation from before cleanup started makes the whole process faster.
Plumbing Emergencies
Burst pipes, major leaks, and sewage backups are the most common home-systems emergency. Shut off your main water valve first — it's usually in a basement, utility closet, or under the kitchen sink indoors, or near the foundation or a curb box outdoors. If the leak involves the hot-water line, shut off the water heater too.
For a full step-by-step on the most common version of this — a burst pipe — see our burst pipe emergency guide, which covers shutting off the water, containing damage, documenting it for insurance, and getting a plumber matched fast.
Sewage backups are their own category: don't run any water in the house (including flushing toilets) until a plumber has cleared the line, and keep everyone away from the affected area — this is a health hazard, not just a mess.
Signs a plumbing issue is genuinely urgent, not something that can wait for a normal appointment: water you can't stop by closing a fixture's own shut-off, a ceiling stain that's actively growing, or any sewage smell indoors. A slow drip under a sink, by contrast, is worth fixing but rarely needs to jump the line. And avoid the temptation to "just tighten it" on a fitting that's actively spraying — a stripped fitting under pressure is a worse problem than the leak you started with.
Post an emergency plumbing job and get matched with an available licensed plumber.
HVAC Emergencies
Losing heat in freezing weather or air conditioning in extreme heat is more than an inconvenience — it can be genuinely dangerous for young kids, older adults, and anyone with a health condition. Check the basics first: breaker tripped, thermostat set correctly, air filter not completely blocked. If it's a simple fix, great. If not, it's time to post the job.
One important exception: if you smell gas or notice a burning smell near your furnace, don't troubleshoot it yourself. Turn the system off at the breaker if you can do so safely, leave the area, and see the section below on when to call 911 or your gas utility instead.
Urgency depends a lot on the season and who's in the house. No air conditioning during a heat wave, or no heat during a freeze, is a real risk for infants, older adults, and anyone with a heart or respiratory condition — treat those as genuine emergencies, not just discomfort. If you have a working carbon monoxide detector, that's exactly the kind of thing to check when a heating system starts acting up; a detector going off is its own reason to leave the house and call for help immediately, not just an HVAC repair.
Post an emergency HVAC job and get matched with an available licensed pro.
Electrical Emergencies
Sparking outlets, a burning smell from a switch or panel, or a sudden loss of power to part of the house all warrant an electrician. Shut off power to the affected circuit at the breaker if you can reach the panel safely — don't touch anything wet or anything you suspect is live.
Downed power lines or an active electrical fire are not a "post a job" situation — see the 911 section below. For everything short of that (a dead outlet, a breaker that keeps tripping, flickering lights that won't stop), a licensed electrician is exactly what you need.
Other signs worth treating as urgent: an outlet or switch plate that's warm to the touch, a burning-plastic smell with no obvious source, or a GFCI outlet that won't reset after multiple tries. Don't ignore a breaker that trips repeatedly by just resetting it over and over — a breaker doing its job over and over usually means something behind the wall needs a real look, not a workaround.
For a full walkthrough of what to do and when it becomes a 911 situation, see our electrical emergency guide.
Post an emergency electrical job and get matched with an available licensed electrician.
Pest Emergencies
Most pest problems can wait for a normal appointment, but some can't: a wasp or hornet nest near a doorway, a sudden rodent infestation, or bed bugs found in the middle of the night are the kind of thing worth handling fast. Keep kids and pets away from any nest you find, and don't attempt to remove a large nest yourself — especially if anyone in the household has a known allergy to stings, where a single encounter can be a real medical emergency, not just an inconvenience.
Rodents are worth treating with more urgency than people usually expect, too: they chew through wiring, which is a real fire risk, not just a nuisance. If you're hearing scratching in the walls or finding droppings, that's worth acting on rather than waiting to see if it goes away on its own — it generally doesn't.
Post an emergency pest control job and get matched with an available licensed pro.
Storm and Roof Emergencies
An active roof leak or storm damage that's left your roof exposed needs fast attention, even as a temporary fix. A properly placed emergency tarp can prevent hours of additional water damage while you wait for a full repair. Move anything valuable out from under the leak, and if the damage looks structural (sagging, visible cracks), stay out of that room until it's been assessed.
Storm damage isn't always as obvious as a hole in the roof. A fallen branch that's cracked shingles without punching through, a gutter torn loose in high wind, or a window that's taken debris damage can all lead to water getting in over the following days even if nothing looks urgent right now. Photograph any visible damage before you tarp it or clean up debris — same reasoning as the plumbing section above, it makes an insurance claim much smoother.
Post an emergency roofing job and get matched with an available licensed pro.
When It's a 911 Call, Not a Genie 911 Job
Some situations need emergency services first, every time — no home-service pro should be your first call for these:
Gas leak or gas smell — leave the house immediately, call your gas utility or 911 from outside, and don't use any switches, phones, or anything that could spark
Active fire — call 911 first, always
Downed power lines — stay well back and call your power utility or 911, never attempt to move one yourself
Structural collapse or a home that feels unsafe to be in — get everyone out and call 911
Any medical emergency — call 911
Once the immediate danger is handled by the right people, a licensed pro can take care of the repair afterward. None of this is meant to make you second-guess a genuine emergency — if you're ever unsure whether something is a 911 situation, treat it like one. That call costs you nothing and being wrong in the cautious direction is always the right call.
How Genie 911 Gets You Matched Fast
The hardest part of most home emergencies isn't knowing something's wrong — it's finding someone who can actually come out today. Calling company after company, leaving voicemails, waiting for callbacks, all while the problem gets worse, is the exact friction Genie 911 was built to remove.
Instead of cold-calling, you post your job once and licensed pros who are genuinely available bid for it. You get matched with one pro, not a dozen callbacks to sort through. You can see how we vet service professionals before you hire, so you know what to expect going in.
This works the same way whether it's a burst pipe at 2am or a roof leak during a weekend storm — the job goes out to pros in your area who are actually free to take it, instead of you working down a list of phone numbers one at a time while the problem gets worse. Posting is free for customers, and it only takes a few minutes.
The process is simple by design: describe the problem, choose the category that fits (the table below maps each emergency type to the right one), and available pros bid for the exclusive lead. You're not fielding a flood of calls from every plumber in town — one pro wins the job and reaches out to you directly, so you can focus on the emergency itself instead of managing a dozen conversations at once.
How to Be Ready Before the Next Emergency
The single biggest difference between a home emergency that's manageable and one that turns into a much bigger repair is usually how fast someone in the house can act in the first few minutes. A little preparation now makes that possible:
Know where your main water shut-off is before you need it — point it out to everyone in the household, not just whoever usually handles repairs.
Know your breaker panel — which breaker controls which room, and how to reach it safely.
Install and test carbon monoxide and smoke detectors, and check the batteries on a regular schedule. This is the cheapest, highest-leverage safety step on this entire list.
Keep a small emergency kit — a flashlight, a few towels, and a bucket, stored somewhere you can find them without hunting in the dark.
Save your utility company's number for gas and power, separately from a general home-service contact — you'll want it fast if you ever smell gas or see a downed line.
None of this prevents every emergency, but it turns the first five minutes from panicked improvising into a plan you already know.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as a home emergency?
Generally, anything that's actively causing damage or could become dangerous if it waits — a burst pipe, no heat in freezing weather, a sparking outlet, a roof actively leaking. If it can safely wait a few days for a normal appointment, it's not an emergency.
Should I try to fix it myself first?
For the safety basics — shutting off water or power at a switch you can safely reach — yes. Beyond that, most home-systems emergencies are worth leaving to a licensed pro; a well-intentioned DIY attempt can sometimes turn a repair into a bigger one.
How fast can I get a pro through Project Genie?
That depends on who's available in your area right now, which is exactly the problem Genie 911 solves — instead of you calling around, available licensed pros come to your job. Post it and you'll hear from a matched pro instead of chasing quotes yourself.
What if I'm not sure whether it's actually an emergency?
When in doubt, treat it as one. The cost of posting a job you didn't strictly need to post urgently is small; the cost of waiting on something that turns out to be serious — a slow leak that becomes a burst pipe, a flickering light that becomes an electrical fire — is not. If it's a genuine 911 situation (see the section above), call emergency services first, always.
One Guide, Every Trade
Home emergencies rarely wait for a convenient time, but knowing the first few steps — and knowing when to call a pro instead of a professional emergency line — makes all the difference. Browse all home services or post your job now and get matched with an available licensed pro.