Question: My wife is concerned that we will have a water leak of some type inside our house when we are away from town over the holidays.
I am trying to convince her that this is very unlikely and that she shouldn’t worry about it, but she has a friend who had such a leak, and it caused her all sorts of problems and expenses.
What if anything do you suggest we should do to prevent such a problem so I can put her concerns to rest?
Your Handyman: Water damage from a leaking pipe, water supply line or appliance can cause all sorts of expensive and time-consuming damage to a home, and your wife is wise to be concerned about such a leak happening while you are out of town.
In California about a third of all damage claims made by homeowners to their property insurance carriers are for damage to the inside of their homes caused by a plumbing water leak.
One of the main reasons that such a water leak will occur is that the water pressure of the hot- and cold-water lines inside the house is too high due to either an improper setting or failure of the home pressure regulator.
The water pressure in the main water line that is buried in your street is very high so that you and your neighbors are able to receive all the water they want during peak usage times like mornings, evenings and Super Bowl halftimes.
Water pressure when measured in the pipes inside your home should be around 55 psi (pounds per square inch), which is controlled by a plumbing device called a pressure regulator that is located on your main water line where it enters the house.
The regulator can be adjusted if it is in workable condition, and if it can’t be adjusted, it usually can be easily replaced by a plumber.
It is a relatively simple device that is basically just a spring and a diaphragm that, in the mineral-rich hard water of Santa Barbara, has a typical life of about 15 years.
Ideally a home should have two plumbing valves; one that allows you to shut off the water supply to the inside of the house without shutting off the outside sprinklers and a second valve that allows the sprinklers to be shut off without shutting off the inside water.
I personally think it is good idea to shut off the inside water whenever you are going out of town, and I do it when just leaving for a weekend. This gives you peace of mind while traveling without having any concerns about your house getting flooded.
I have seen and heard of many flooding situations, but the worst was a home where the family was away for several weeks and a hot water supply line to an upstairs bathroom faucet ruptured.
The house had a tankless water heater that, like the advertising says, produced endless hot water, and until the neighbors noticed the windows steaming up, the house was flooded with hot water.
So, yes, turn off the house water when out of town, have a plumber check your water pressure annually, repair any fixtures with signs of leakage, and make sure all your faucets have braided stainless steel supply lines and not the old-style white plastic lines.
Water alarms can be purchased at most any hardware store and can be placed under sinks and in laundry rooms.
There also are now Wi-Fi devices that can monitor your water usage and automatically shut off the water when a leak is detected.
