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What should you do about a trickling sound?
A trickling sound in a Cheshire house is a reason to write down where you hear it, and not a reason to climb into the loft. This page says what to put in a plumber's job, and it does not name the part that is running.
Last reviewed:What is a trickling sound, if you have not found a drip?
People use "trickling" for a small, continuous sound of water when they are not running a tap, a shower or a washing machine. It is a symptom, not a part name. It might be behind a cistern, in a cupboard, or overhead. This page does not tell you which of those it is, because a sound without a look is not a diagnosis.
Crewe, Nantwich and Sandbach are the first towns this page has in mind. Anyone in the UK can post or register.
A blocked basin is a different complaint. That job is about water that sits in the sink, and it is covered on a blocked sink. A repair to the pan, the seat or the flush is covered on toilet repairs. The cold-water tank in the loft, as an object, is covered on what a header tank is. If your only fact is the sound, stay on this page.
What should you write down before you post?
Stand in the room where you can hear it and note the time of day. Say whether a tap, a shower or an appliance is running. Say whether the sound is there first thing, or only after someone has used water upstairs. Say whether you can see water on a wall, on a ceiling, or leaving a pipe on an outside wall. Those are observations. They are not a cause.
If you cannot tell where the sound is, say that. A job that says "trickling, I do not know where" is more useful than a job that guesses a valve. Do not unscrew a panel "to be helpful". Do not empty a cistern. This page does not describe how to stop the flow.
If water is coming through a ceiling, say that in the first line and treat it as urgent. That is no longer only a sound.
Why should the loft stay shut?
HSE says work at height means work in any place where, if there were no precautions in place, a person could fall a distance liable to cause personal injury, for example a fall through a fragile roof [S1]. It also says to avoid work at height where it is reasonably practicable to do so, and that the work must be properly planned, supervised and carried out by competent people [S1]. Climbing through a hatch to "see if it is the tank" is the work this page is telling you not to do.
If you already know there is a tank, a boarded patch, or no boards, you can say that from memory. If you do not know, say you do not know. The person you hire can decide how to look.
HSE: work at height. QuoteZila is not affiliated with this organisation.
HSE's introduction to working at height is the page those sentences come from.
Could the sound involve an old tank?
HSE's diagram of where asbestos can occur in a house lists an asbestos cement water tank among the indoor items [S2]. The same body of guidance says asbestos can be present today in any building built or refurbished before 2000 [S3]. You cannot see, smell or feel the fibres, and disturbing a material that contains them releases fibres into the air [S3].
That is not a statement that your tank is asbestos cement. It is a reason not to drill it, sand it, or break a lid to identify it. Say "there may be an old tank, I have not disturbed it" if that matches what you know. A plumber can then decide whether the job is a simple inlet fault or something that should not be broken up.
The tank as a piece of equipment, and what a quote should say about replacing one, is the header-tank page, not this one.
Who should you ask to find it?
WaterSafe Register describes itself as a free online directory of plumbers and water supply pipe installers that can be searched [S4]. Searching it is your check, not ours. Plumbers on QuoteZila can be asked for a visit. The visit is to find the trickle, not to start by replacing parts you have not described.
Citizens Advice says some traders charge for quotes, so ask about this first, and to try to get written quotes from at least 3 different traders [S5]. A quote is a fixed price. An estimate is a rough guess, so you might end up paying more [S5]. For a sound you cannot see, ask whether the price is for finding the cause, for the repair, or for both. A price that assumes a named part, when you have only described a sound, is a different job from a price to investigate.
If the cause turns out to be a heating circuit or a gas appliance, stop and treat that as gas work. This page does not cover gas. The Gas Safe Register is the place to check a gas engineer.
Jobs you might post
These are examples, not taken from real job posts.
- "Trickling sound in the airing cupboard when no tap is on. I have not opened any panels. Please find the cause and quote the repair separately from the visit."
- "Trickling heard in a bedroom ceiling at night. I have not been in the loft. Please look, and do not break any old tank."
- "Water leaving a pipe on the outside wall in a thin stream, taps off. Please say what you think it is after you have seen it."
How do you compare the replies?
Ask each reply to separate the finding from the repair. Ask what they will do if the first look does not show the cause. A daily rate, if they offer one, should say how many days and how many hours count as a day, because Citizens Advice warns that a daily rate can be strung out unless those figures are written down [S5].
Up to five matched local businesses can send a quote [QZ2]. QuoteZila is free for customers and local businesses [QZ1]. What a plumber's visit can include on a wider job is on the plumber cost guide.
Honest status: QuoteZila is new. We're starting in Cheshire, beginning with Crewe, Nantwich and Sandbach, and growing area by area. Anyone in the UK can still post a job or register a business. How fast you get quotes depends on how many local businesses have joined near you. Businesses can register and receive jobs straight away. We don't check insurance, qualifications or registrations, so please check these yourself before you hire.
Posting a job is not open yet
Is a trickle the same as a blocked sink?
No. A blocked sink is water that will not leave the basin. A trickle you can hear when the taps are shut is water that is still moving somewhere you have not asked it to. Say which one you have. If both are true, say both, because they can be separate faults in the same house.
Should I open the loft hatch to find it?
This page says no. HSE describes work at height as any place where, if precautions were not there, a person could fall a distance liable to cause injury, and it says to avoid that work where it is reasonably practicable. A loft you can fall through is that kind of place. Describe the sound from the rooms you already use.
Could an old tank be involved?
It might, and that is a reason not to prod anything. HSE's residential diagram lists an asbestos cement water tank among places asbestos can occur, and it says asbestos can be present in any building built or refurbished before 2000. Do not sand, drill or break a tank to see what it is made of.
What should the job description say?
Where you hear it, whether any tap is open, whether water is appearing outside, and whether the sound stops when you have been away. You do not need to name a valve. A plumber who can search the WaterSafe directory is the person to ask to find the cause. This page does not print a repair sequence.
Does QuoteZila check the plumber?
No. We don't check insurance, qualifications or registrations, so please check these yourself before you hire. You can report a quote or a business from your job page.
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Related pages
- Under the sink pipes: what each one does. A guide to the pipes under a kitchen sink: hot and cold supplies, isolation valves, the trap and waste, appliance connections, and what to do about a leak.
- Washing machine hose too short? Extending the pipes. How to deal with a washing machine fill or drain hose that will not reach: longer hoses, extension couplings, moving the valve or waste, and the socket.
Sources
- QZ1: QuoteZila product fact. QuoteZila pricing line.
- QZ2: QuoteZila product fact. QuoteZila FAQ How does getting quotes work.
- S1: Introduction to working at height safely, Health and Safety Executive. Accessed 2026-10-29. https://www.hse.gov.uk/work-at-height/introduction.htm
- S2: Where asbestos can occur in buildings, Health and Safety Executive. Accessed 2026-10-29. https://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/diagrams.htm
- S3: Why asbestos is dangerous and where it can be found, Health and Safety Executive. Accessed 2026-10-29. https://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/introduction/why-and-where.htm
- S4: WaterSafe Register, WaterSafe. Accessed 2026-10-29. https://www.watersafe.org.uk/
- S5: Before you get work done on your home, Citizens Advice. Accessed 2026-10-29. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/getting-home-improvements-done/before-you-get-building-work-done/