No water, weak water, or a pump that never shuts off
If your Fairland home is on a private well, a dry tap usually points to the well pump, the pressure switch or the pressure tank, not the street. A tank pressure gauge that swings quickly between low and high, with the pump clicking on every few seconds, means a waterlogged tank. Check your breaker first. Do not open the pressure switch cover with wet hands or while standing in water.
If the water is running but weak, a failing pump, a clogged sediment filter or a leak in the buried line from well to house can all do it. A buried leak is tracked with acoustic listening and a pressure test. See our water service line repair page for how that digging is scoped before anyone runs a trencher.
Repairs here are made to the same Indiana Plumbing Code standard as in Shelbyville, though which office inspects the work depends on the address.
Slow drains and gurgling when you are not sure where the waste goes
Many rural homes use a septic system, not a sewer main. In Shelby County, the county health department's Environmental Division issues permits for sewage disposal systems that are not connected to a regulated sewer, and repairs have to be inspected and signed off. The septic permit fee is $300. The department keeps records back to 1955, so ask for your property's file before anyone digs.
A septic backup looks like slow drains in every fixture, gurgling in the toilet when the washer drains, and wet or foul-smelling ground over the tank or field. Never run a jetter blindly into a septic line. We locate the tank, check the baffle and the line to the field, and say whether the fix is a pump-out, a cleared line or a permitted repair. Our sewer line repair page covers the in-house side of that line.
Home on a private well and septic
- No water usually means pump, pressure switch or tank
- Backups hit every drain together
- Repairs near the tank or field need the county health department
- No utility to call, so the plumber is first on the phone
Home on a public water and sewer system
- No water often means a utility outage or a shutoff valve
- A backup may be the lateral or the sewer main
- Ask your water provider which side of the meter is yours
- Whole-street trouble goes to the system operator
What we could not confirm
We could not find a published water or sewer provider for Fairland, so we will not guess. Check your bill or ask your water provider. If there is no bill, you are probably on a well. Tell dispatch either way.
A wet basement, and a sump pump that quits when you need it
Brandywine Creek runs through Brandywine Township. We have no data on flooding in Fairland itself, so this is practical, not predictive: any basement below grade, in any county, depends on its sump pit during a hard rain. The pump, the float switch and the discharge line each fail in different ways, and a stuck float is the cheapest repair.
Lift the pit lid and watch the float rise. If water is rising and the pump is silent, check the outlet and the breaker. A battery backup keeps pumping if the power goes out in the same storm. For a failed pump or a first install, see sump pump repair and installation.
Find out what your Fairland home is on
Ten minutes with these answers speeds up the first call.
- Do you receive a monthly water bill? If not, look for a well cap or a pressure tank.
- Is there a water meter near the front wall or in a pit by the road?
- Do you get a sewer bill, or is there a buried tank lid in the yard?
- Where is the main shutoff valve inside the house?
- Does a sump pit sit in the basement floor?
- Where does the basement floor drain lead?
Which rules apply to a Fairland repair
The Shelby County Building Inspector serves the unincorporated area of the county and the Town of Fairland. Plumbing contractors register with the county, unless the owner installs plumbing in a home they will live in. Permit rules vary, so ask the building department before you start. The City of Shelbyville lists the 2012 Indiana Plumbing Code, so ask the inspector which edition applies to your repair.
Digging for a buried line needs a call to Indiana 811 at least two business days ahead, and the service runs 24/7. Calls from nearby Boggstown (ZIP 46110) reach the same dispatch line. Homes farther afield get the same service, from Morristown to the northeast to Waldron on the east side of the county.
Before we arrive in Fairland
Four steps that fit a well, septic or town-water house.
Shut the water at the right place
On a well, switch off the pump breaker and close the valve after the pressure tank. On public water, close the house main near the meter.
Stop sending water down the drain
On septic, extra water pushes more waste toward the field. No laundry, no long showers, until the system is checked.
Move people and valuables away from standing water
Keep clear of the sump pit, the water heater and electrical outlets if the floor is wet.
Gather what dispatch will ask
Well or public water, septic or sewer, where the shutoff is and what you hear or see. It speeds up the first visit.
County sources for Fairland homes
Fairland is an incorporated town in Brandywine Township, Shelby County. Septic permits, inspections and sewage complaints go through the Shelby County Health Department, Environmental Division. Building and plumbing permits go through the Shelby County Building Inspector.
Hardness and water source are not published for Fairland that we could find. Test your tap and ask your water provider for its annual water quality report.
Source type: Shelby County Health Department and Shelby County Building Inspector pages
No water or a backup in Fairland?
Call the 24/7 line and tell dispatch if the house is on a well, septic or a public system.
Fairland plumbing questions, answered
Yes. The 24/7 emergency line is open nights, weekends and holidays, and dispatch sends a licensed plumber out from Shelbyville. Same-day appointments are offered when available. We do not promise an arrival time.
We serve ZIP 46126, the Fairland post office area northwest of Shelbyville, and ZIP 46110 for the Boggstown side in the same county. That covers the town itself and the surrounding rural roads of Brandywine Township.
That points to your own house, not the system. On a well, the pump, the pressure switch or the tank is the usual cause. On a public system, a closed valve or a broken service line is more likely.
The Shelby County Health Department, Environmental Division. Repairs and new construction have to be inspected and signed off, and the septic permit is $300. Our plumber can tell you whether the repair touches the tank or only the house side.
Owners installing plumbing in a home they will live in can often work without contractor registration with the county. Permit rules vary, so ask the Shelby County Building Inspector before starting. Gas and electrical work are not do-it-yourself jobs. If you hire out, check the plumber's license on the state's lookup at mylicense.in.gov.