Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

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Have you ever had a water leak related to a washing machine?

Yes - The drain hose popped out of the drain line
3
7%
Yes - The drain line backed up
4
9%
Yes - A supply hose ruptured/leaked
6
13%
Yes - The washer itself leaked (drum seal, internal valve, etc)
11
24%
Yes - It was from some other cause (please explain)
8
18%
No
13
29%
 
Total votes: 45

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magellan
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Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by magellan »

Recently, someone commented in another thread about having had several washing machine overflows and I'd like to learn more about folks' experiences with leaking or overflowing washers.

We've had a second floor laundry for around 15 years and haven't had any problems so far. It would be a major disaster if the washer did leak, so I'm a bit paranoid about this. The washer has a pan under it, but I've long wondered if I should apply something waterproof to the walls that feeds into the overflow pan in case there's a hose or connector leak. I'm careful to use heavy duty hoses and replace them when the washer is replaced.

I'm wondering if anyone has had washer leaks and what happened. I'm especially interested in experiences from people with a pan under a washer that didn't work correctly or any case where water caused damage to their living space.

Thanks,

Jim
Last edited by magellan on Sat Jul 07, 2012 10:04 am, edited 1 time in total.
livesoft
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by livesoft »

I have never had a washer leak, but I have experienced other people's leaks.

The neighbors left for a 7-day vacation and about an hour later their hose from faucet to washing machine broke. After a while it was noticed by their live-in housekeeper who came running over to our house. The entire ground floor had about 3 inches of water in it. We called the owners who came back and hired a water remediation firm to tear out carpets, baseboards, repaint, etc. (You may wish to turn off the faucet to the washer if you are going on vacation.)

At work, we have many water-cooled devices. We have water sensors on the floors that are wired in to shutdown valves. In one leak, the custodian had put the water sensor up on shelf so that they could mop.

In our attic we have hot water heaters and A/C units. All of them have pans under them with drain hoses that lead to the outside. The danger is that the drain hoses get plugged with spider webs, mud dauber mud, mildew & algae and so on. As part of home maintenance we make sure these hoses remain unclogged.
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sscritic
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by sscritic »

magellan wrote:Recently, someone commented in another thread about having had several washing machine overflows and I'd like to learn more about folks' experiences with leaking or overflowing washers.
I left a short screwdriver in my pants. It fell out of the pants and punctured the drum during the spin cycle. It works every time. :)

Luckily I was home and heard a sound that didn't seem right, so got the water mopped up quickly enough that there was no damage to the wood floors. And those little pans they put under washers on the 2nd floor? They contain drips, not floods.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by carolinaman »

Our washer is in 1st floor laundry room. We had a slow leak where hose connects to water supply. It leaked behind wall so we did not notice it until floor began to sag. It required replacement of floor joists, subflooring, new floor for laundry room and assorted other things to repair. It took 3 very handy people an entire weekend to do the repairs. If I had a contractor do it it would have cost several thousand dollars. I am somewhat paranoid of water leaks with just one level. I hate to think how paranoid I would be with washer on 2nd level although a proper functioniing pan under washer should take care of your concerns.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by magellan »

johnep wrote:Our washer is in 1st floor laundry room. We had a slow leak where hose connects to water supply.
Did you have one of those plastic in-wall inserts that houses the water supplies, shutoff valves, and the drain connection? By the looks of mine, it seems to be designed so that if there's a slow leak at the hose connection, any water would leak into the plastic container and down the drain pipe.

That seems like a clever design, but I'm sure there are cases where it could fail to catch the water. I've contemplated applying some sort of sheet material on the wall that would catch any overflow from this plastic insert (or outright spraying from a hose, and direct it down the wall and into the washer pan.

Jim
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by fsrph »

livesoft wrote: (You may wish to turn off the faucet to the washer if you are going on vacation.)
I shut the water to the washer off after every time I use it. It's simple just turn the check valve off. The amount of damage a water leak can do in a few hours is huge. Even if I am out of the house for a while or at work, I like the security of the water valve to the washer being off. Also, I hear stainless steel washer hoses are well worth the cost altho I never had them myself.

Francis
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magellan
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by magellan »

sscritic wrote:Luckily I was home and heard a sound that didn't seem right, so got the water mopped up quickly enough that there was no damage to the wood floors. And those little pans they put under washers on the 2nd floor? They contain drips, not floods.
Just curious - Did you have a pan under the washer that didn't contain the leak?

By the looks of the pan under my washer, I think it has pretty good containment capability since it's got a 1 1/2" drain line attached to it. Even if the water supply was running full out, I think the drain line could handle it. That is, if the water was actually running directly into the pan and not spraying all over the place.

Jim
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magellan
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by magellan »

johnep wrote:We had a slow leak where hose connects to water supply. It leaked behind wall so we did not notice it until floor began to sag.
About how old was the leaking hose?

Thanks,

Jim
mbres60
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by mbres60 »

My parents used to live in Florida in a one story "villa" condo. My mom put clothes in the wash and then went to the other end of their unit to watch tv with my Dad. She forgot about the laundry. When she got up later to walk out of the den she stepped into the living room into a couple of inches of water. The whole condo flooded except for the den. They told me it was caused by a hose that broke. They were overwhelmed and were taken advantage of and ended up with lower quality carpets than what they originally had. They spent a few weeks in a hotel while the placed was fixed up. They had to buy new furniture for two bedrooms because the fiberboard (or whatever their furniture was made of) wicked up the water. Not a pleasant experience. I doubt any pan would have contained the water. As someone previously stated it is for drips not floods.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by sscritic »

magellan wrote: By the looks of the pan under my washer, I think it has pretty good containment capability since it's got a 1 1/2" drain line attached to it. Even if the water supply was running full out, I think the drain line could handle it. That is, if the water was actually running directly into the pan and not spraying all over the place.
Disconnect your hose at the washer end. Point it down at the pan. Turn on full. Let us know what happens.

You may be right, although this test is not totally accurate. I have a new washer and noticed the hoses seem really narrow; they are designed to restrict the flow. Maybe you need to just remove the hose before the test so the hose doesn't restrict the flow.

But even that is not the right comparison. Fill your tub to the top. Then blast a 2" round hole in the tub. What happens?

I guess if I ever passed physics I could figure out the flow rate out of the drain, the capacity of the pan, and what flow rate into the pan would be required to overflow the pan after how many minutes. Oh, wait, depending on the source of the water, the flow rate into the pan could be variable as in my case (it depended on the size of the hole and the depth of the water above the hole, which was declining rapidly).

P.S. I had a drain, but no pan. Don't ask.
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Watty
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by Watty »

Maytag moved their manufacturing down to Mexico about ten years ago and their quality has gone way down hill and I have hade trouble with several Maytag appliances that I bought about the same time, (that is the short version of my rant!)

We had a Maytag washing machine in our unfinished basement that was about two years old and that my teenage son put a load of clothes in late one evening. Fortunately he went to put it in the dryer at about two hours later instead of letting it sit overnight. When he went down there the water was running full blast overflowing the washing machine and there was at least an inch of water in that part of the basement. We were up until about three in the morning cleaning it up but there was not much damage once we got everything dried out. If it had run overnight it would have been a major problem.

The cause of the problem was that inside the washing machine there was a small sensor hose that goes from the tub to the control unit that had come off. There was a clip that should have held it on that had never been attached, and I could tell that it had not just come loose.

Since then I have gotten inexpensive water alarms that are vaguely like smoke detectors and I have the set up at both the washing machine and hot water heater. If you go to some place like Amazon and search on “water sensor” you will find lots of them. The one by the washing machine has gone off once and saved me a mess when the drain hose came out of the drain pipe.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by gkaplan »

I was thinking it would be nice to have a washer-dryer unit in my next apartment. Reading some of these horror stories makes me think that using the good old building laundromat has its advantages.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by sscritic »

Watty wrote:Maytag moved their manufacturing down to Mexico about ten years ago
Maytag isn't Maytag.
Maytag Corporation was an American home and commercial appliance company headquartered in Newton, Iowa. It is now a division of the Whirlpool Corporation....
On April 1, 2006, the Whirlpool completed its acquisition of Maytag Corporation. In May 2006, Whirlpool announced plans to close the former Maytag headquarters office in Newton, as well as laundry product manufacturing plants in Newton, Iowa; Herrin, Illinois; and Searcy, Arkansas by 2007. Following the Maytag headquarters closure, all brand administration was transferred to Whirlpool's headquarters in Benton Harbor, Michigan. The Maytag name would now be used on Whirlpool-designed appliances.
Admittedly, 2006 wasn't 10 years ago, so it is possible the real Maytag had moved some production from Newton to Mexico prior to it's collapse, but wikipedia says that they still had plants in the US in 2006 ("laundry product manufacturing plants in Newton, Iowa; Herrin, Illinois; and Searcy, Arkansas").
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by bru »

When I watch House Hunters people always seemed pleased when a house has a second floor laundry room. Maybe I'm missing something but I never understood why. I guess they think they are closer to where they need to gather up and put the clothes away. But unless you want to stay up there while washing and drying it seems like a pain. Add the potential for the water leak issue and for sure it's not for me.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by stan_the_man »

A freeflow prevention device will help prevent some of the worst leaks -- which are usually caused by busted supply hoses. Quality supply hoses that are regularly replaced will help as well -- so will those moisture alarms.

The real problem with those pans is that when you have a bad leak, let's say from a busted supply hose, the water doesn't go straight down -- it goes everywhere.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by magellan »

OK, after all these informative posts, I decided to order a couple of water leak alarms. Seems like good piece of mind for hardly any money.

I had a minor oil burner water leak earlier this year that went a couple of days unnoticed. I'll put one of these in the laundry room and a couple in the basement.

Apparently, the first alert alarms don't have a low battery warning, but they do have a wired remote sensor instead of an all-in-one design. Reviews are very good for the Zircon sensor, which you just place on the floor. It seems to have a low battery warning alarm like most smoke detectors. I think I need the flexibility of the remote probe so I'll just have to replace the batteries on a schedule with the first alert unit.

Jim
Last edited by magellan on Sat Jul 07, 2012 5:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by linuxuser »

gkaplan wrote:I was thinking it would be nice to have a washer-dryer unit in my next apartment. Reading some of these horror stories makes me think that using the good old building laundromat has its advantages.
All of the new more "upscale" apartments being built these days have W/D in the unit.

You'll tend to find the apt laundromats in older complexes.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by linuxuser »

fsrph wrote:
livesoft wrote: (You may wish to turn off the faucet to the washer if you are going on vacation.)
I shut the water to the washer off after every time I use it. It's simple just turn the check valve off. The amount of damage a water leak can do in a few hours is huge. Even if I am out of the house for a while or at work, I like the security of the water valve to the washer being off. Also, I hear stainless steel washer hoses are well worth the cost altho I never had them myself.

Francis
Check valve?
Are there two? I see two levers (red + blue) at the junction of the hoses from the washer to the water supply hot and cold.

I have a 2nd floor laundry and I would to have a water leak up there.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by Offshore »

We attempted to wash two bed pillows. One of them took on air during "fill cycle", and became a balloon. With a top loading, older washer, many gallons of water was diverted from entering the tub and ended up on the floor. It leaked through the floor to the ceiling of our finished basement. Repair bill = $1600. Insurance not used ($1000. deductible) and they told me we would have rate increase. Lesson learned about washing pillows.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by CaliJim »

Yes - Other:
1) Non HE detergent in front loader
2) Hair on gasket in front loader
-calijim- | | For more info, click this Wiki
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by FRANK2009 »

My ounce of prevention (well maybe a few hundred gallons) are hoses from http://www.floodchek.com/. One less thing to worry about.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by retiredjg »

I had a leak once. Whatever it is that senses the water level (plastic tubing) came unplugged. The washer didn't know it was full and kept on filling. Luckily I heard it before too much water spilled out.

I don't have an overflow pan, but there is a drain in the floor so only a few inches of carpet got wet. However, I don't think the drain is low enough to have funneled all the water fast enough. If I had not heard the problem just after it started, it would have been a mess both upstairs and downstairs.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by fsrph »

linuxuser wrote:
fsrph wrote:
livesoft wrote: (You may wish to turn off the faucet to the washer if you are going on vacation.)
I shut the water to the washer off after every time I use it. It's simple just turn the check valve off. The amount of damage a water leak can do in a few hours is huge. Even if I am out of the house for a while or at work, I like the security of the water valve to the washer being off. Also, I hear stainless steel washer hoses are well worth the cost altho I never had them myself.

Francis
Check valve?
Are there two? I see two levers (red + blue) at the junction of the hoses from the washer to the water supply hot and cold.

I have a 2nd floor laundry and I would to have a water leak up there.
On my washer setup where the hot and cold hoses meet the fitting on the wall there is one valve in the middle of the hot and cold hoses. Turn the valve up and water is off to both hoses, turn the valve down to use the washer. It is a lever that turns up or down (maybe I was using the wrong terminology calling it a "valve"). It is not the round type of valve you turn clockwise. You may have a different setup with your washer and need to turn both levers on and off.

Francis
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by cheese_breath »

I had the pump gasket go bad. Really bad. When the pump turned on to drain the tub it sprayed water all over the floor underneath the washer. Fortunately it was on a linoleum floor so it didn't do any damage to the floor.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by heyyou »

At my friend's house, while she was on vacation, when the water was running under the garage door, the neighbors turned off the water at the service box.

Now she uses laundry hoses that are shielded with stainless steel. That is what burst, one of the flexible hoses.

Turn off the valves when you are going to be gone for weeks.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by SurfCityBill »

bru wrote:When I watch House Hunters people always seemed pleased when a house has a second floor laundry room. Maybe I'm missing something but I never understood why. I guess they think they are closer to where they need to gather up and put the clothes away. But unless you want to stay up there while washing and drying it seems like a pain. Add the potential for the water leak issue and for sure it's not for me.
The main reason for the second floor laundry room is because that's the same floor the bedrooms are on which means "schlepping" the clothes from bedroom to laundry room doesn't require stairs, etc.

-B
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by sport »

We bought a new washer when we moved into our new house. Instead of using the fill hoses that came with the washer, I purchased a pair of stainless steel armored hoses. The pair of hoses cost $20. While this will not eliminate the possibility of all problems, it will prevent the problem of a burst fill hose. I consider it to be inexpensive insurance. I also consider these hoses to be indispensable for any washer installed where a burst hose will cause significant damage.

Jeff
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by Colorado14 »

fsrph wrote: I shut the water to the washer off after every time I use it. It's simple just turn the check valve off.
I do this too, as a result of learning my lesson after the hose sprung a leak. Several years later I had to replace the clamp on the hose as the old clamp no longer was tight enough to keep the hose connected to the washer.

Regarding the comment about a second floor laundry room: a coworker had to rebuild the main floor of her home after the second floor toilet (not the washer) overflowed for several hours and left a lake on the main floor.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by linuxuser »

fsrph wrote:
linuxuser wrote:
fsrph wrote:
livesoft wrote: (You may wish to turn off the faucet to the washer if you are going on vacation.)
I shut the water to the washer off after every time I use it. It's simple just turn the check valve off. The amount of damage a water leak can do in a few hours is huge. Even if I am out of the house for a while or at work, I like the security of the water valve to the washer being off. Also, I hear stainless steel washer hoses are well worth the cost altho I never had them myself.

Francis
Check valve?
Are there two? I see two levers (red + blue) at the junction of the hoses from the washer to the water supply hot and cold.

I have a 2nd floor laundry and I would to have a water leak up there.
On my washer setup where the hot and cold hoses meet the fitting on the wall there is one valve in the middle of the hot and cold hoses. Turn the valve up and water is off to both hoses, turn the valve down to use the washer. It is a lever that turns up or down (maybe I was using the wrong terminology calling it a "valve"). It is not the round type of valve you turn clockwise. You may have a different setup with your washer and need to turn both levers on and off.

Francis
My connections look like this. ->>> http://www.acehardware.com/product/inde ... 44.1260946

So, it looks like I should turn off both valves.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by SurfCityBill »

jsl11 wrote:We bought a new washer when we moved into our new house. Instead of using the fill hoses that came with the washer, I purchased a pair of stainless steel armored hoses. The pair of hoses cost $20. While this will not eliminate the possibility of all problems, it will prevent the problem of a burst fill hose. I consider it to be inexpensive insurance. I also consider these hoses to be indispensable for any washer installed where a burst hose will cause significant damage.

Jeff

This applies to toilet tank supply lines as well.

-B
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by camper »

When we had our home built, I was concerned about having the laundry room upstairs. Builder asked if I wanted to lug the laundry up and down stairs since the bedrooms were upstairs as well. I said good point. Then he told me that the pan under the washer would have an 1 1/2" drain pipe that would drain outside if something bad happened. That put our minds at ease.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by plannerman »

I just remodeled my second floor laundry room. I installed 1) a pan under the washer with an 1 1/2" drain hose that dumps into a floor drain on the bottom level, 2) stainless steel shielded hoses and 3) an "Automatic Washing Machine Shutoff Valve.

The washing machine plugs into the automatic valve, which only allows water to pass through it when the washer is running.
When the washer is off, no water can flow through the fill hoses precluding any leaks when no one is around. If the washer itself should leak during a washing cycle, then the water will collect in the pan and run into the drain. If a fill hose should leak during a washing cycle, there is a leak sensor that shuts off the automatic valve.

plannerman
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by bru »

SurfCityBill wrote:
bru wrote:When I watch House Hunters people always seemed pleased when a house has a second floor laundry room. Maybe I'm missing something but I never understood why. I guess they think they are closer to where they need to gather up and put the clothes away. But unless you want to stay up there while washing and drying it seems like a pain. Add the potential for the water leak issue and for sure it's not for me.
The main reason for the second floor laundry room is because that's the same floor the bedrooms are on which means "schlepping" the clothes from bedroom to laundry room doesn't require stairs, etc.

-B
Yes I mentioned that. For me it doesn't make sense. So do you go downstairs while the washing machine is running? Or stay upstairs for two hours? If the former then you go back up to add bleach or when it's time to transfer to the dryer? And back down? And then back up to take a few things out, etc.?

For me and our relatively small family and the few loads we do having the washing machine on the main floor or basement makes more sense. YMMV.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by linuxuser »

bru wrote:
SurfCityBill wrote:
bru wrote:When I watch House Hunters people always seemed pleased when a house has a second floor laundry room. Maybe I'm missing something but I never understood why. I guess they think they are closer to where they need to gather up and put the clothes away. But unless you want to stay up there while washing and drying it seems like a pain. Add the potential for the water leak issue and for sure it's not for me.
The main reason for the second floor laundry room is because that's the same floor the bedrooms are on which means "schlepping" the clothes from bedroom to laundry room doesn't require stairs, etc.

-B
Yes I mentioned that. For me it doesn't make sense. So do you go downstairs while the washing machine is running? Or stay upstairs for two hours? If the former then you go back up to add bleach or when it's time to transfer to the dryer? And back down? And then back up to take a few things out, etc.?

For me and our relatively small family and the few loads we do having the washing machine on the main floor or basement makes more sense. YMMV.
It is not you walking down and up stairs, it is about doing that with loads of clothing or sheets or blankets or a big comforter.
To me, it becomes a safety concern.
My mother's washing machine is in the basement.
She lives alone.
I worry about her taking a mistep carrying the laundry.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by SurfCityBill »

bru wrote:
SurfCityBill wrote:
bru wrote:When I watch House Hunters people always seemed pleased when a house has a second floor laundry room. Maybe I'm missing something but I never understood why. I guess they think they are closer to where they need to gather up and put the clothes away. But unless you want to stay up there while washing and drying it seems like a pain. Add the potential for the water leak issue and for sure it's not for me.
The main reason for the second floor laundry room is because that's the same floor the bedrooms are on which means "schlepping" the clothes from bedroom to laundry room doesn't require stairs, etc.

-B
Yes I mentioned that. For me it doesn't make sense. So do you go downstairs while the washing machine is running? Or stay upstairs for two hours? If the former then you go back up to add bleach or when it's time to transfer to the dryer? And back down? And then back up to take a few things out, etc.?

For me and our relatively small family and the few loads we do having the washing machine on the main floor or basement makes more sense. YMMV.

I understand. In our case we never know if we're going to be up or down. For instance, kitchen and family room are down, but home office and bedrooms are up. Thus, it's not a question of spending 2 hours up or down, it's simply a question of not hauling laundry up or down, not whether I personally have to go up or down.

-B
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by dratkinson »

Washing machine hoses.

I've switched to the FloodChek hoses from my worry about burst washing machine hoses. I've noticed they restrict the water flow to the point it requires almost 15 minutes to fill my top loader. (Thinking about it, it makes sense. A restrictor at the machine-end restricts the flow. A flow greater would indicate a burst hose and the sensing valve at the faucet-end would close.) Bottom line. My wash-cycle time has gone from a little over 30 minutes to almost an hour per load.



Toilet water supply.

I did have one of these break. Luckily I was home and heard it. Replaced all hoses after it happened. A wet-dry shop vacuum picked up water. Only a little water damage to basement utility room sheet rock wall.

But this got me to thinking.... What if I had not been home? How do I protect myself from a water leak then?



Whole-house automatic water valve and sensors.

I have been thinking about a whole-house, automatic, water shut-off valve, but have not yet pulled the trigger. Many types exist. Some work on sensors. Some work on water-flow timers. Some work on times of day. I'm leaning toward the sensor type as the quickest to respond to a leak.

One example: WaterCop: http://www.watercop.com/. In researching I learned the wireless sensors are said to eat batteries, so wired sensors seem to be preferred.



Water leak during power outage.

In researching, I learned NO automatic valve can handle the problem of a leak which occurs during a long-term power outage. (I seem to remember some automatic water valves do have a backup battery, but don't know how long those will last.)

My solution. I was thinking that a zone valve, repurposed from a hot water heating system, might be used for leak protection during a long-term power outage. Plumbed into the house water line and constantly powered (from a wall outlet like an alarm clock), water could NOT flow after the power failed and the zone valve closed under spring pressure.

What about getting/using water when you needed it during an ordinary power outage and the zone valve has closed? A manual bypass valve, plumbed around the zone valve, could be used to temporarily restore the water flow during a power outage. Would need to close valve after power is restored, to restore the zone valve protection.

I don't know if zone valves are rated for continuous long-term service or how efficient they are. Maybe a better solution exists.



My Idea for a Whole House Water Leak Protection System. This is my thinking so far. I haven't yet pulled the trigger on this idea. Would appreciate constructive feedback for improvements.

Code: Select all

main water supply..........WM.....WSO1........ZV..........WC...........house water line
                                          :        :
                                          :..WSO2..:   ..wso3..
WM, water meter.

WSO1, water shutoff valve, house main, manual ball type, normally open (on, inline position).

ZV, Zone Valve, electrically powered, repurposed from hot water heating system. 

WSO2, water shutoff valve, bypass, manual ball type, normally closed (off, crossflow position).

WC, WaterCop with wired senors.  WSO3 is optional.
I prefer ball valves to gate valves. In my experience, they seem to be more positive in closing tightly.

Would be easy to mount a remote switch for the ZV, if desired. Maybe in a garage to remind you to turn off the water when you leave your vacation home. No water? No chance for a leak. Problem solved.

Whole system could be mounted to plywood panel with appropriate labels and instructions for use both during normal and bypass operations.

Average homeowner with copper water pipe soldering skills should be able to build this system. Will also need to be able to fish sensor/power wires through walls to place sensors.

If not already available, will need to install an electrical outlet for use by WC and ZV. Same outlet could power both.



The system in operation:

If the power is on and a leak happens, WC sensors will detect leak and WC will shut off water. WC alarm will notify homeowner.

If the power is off, the ZV will shut off house water supply so a leak can not happen.

If water is needed during a power outage, temporarily switch WSO2 to inline position (on, open) to bypass ZV protection to use water. WSO2 must be reposition to crossflow position (off, closed) after power is restored to restore ZV protection.

If you feared the lack of water from a failed WC, you could also build into the system a valve (wso3) to bypass the WC.

This system should also protect a vacant vacation home from water leaks due to power outage/loss of heat/frozen pipes.



Feel free to use, adapt, improve upon this idea. I'd like to know of your ideas for improvements and for better parts from which to build this system.
Last edited by dratkinson on Sun Jul 08, 2012 4:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
d.r.a., not dr.a. | I'm a novice investor; you are forewarned.
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soaring
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by soaring »

some other reason....my better half washed two throw sofa cushions using lg load. Then opened door (top loader at the time) and pushed them down because they floated. This pushed water in the tub over the top!
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nisiprius
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by nisiprius »

In our case, there is a large-diameter thick rubber hose from the washer that is basically just stuffed into the end of a long PVC pipe. This was a professional installation so (shrug) I assume that's how it's supposed to be. It is secure in the sense of not coming loose, but not a water-tight seal. In normal operation, flow down the PVC pipe into the sewer pipe is much faster than the washer pumps water out, so no problem.

A nearby tree (now gone) was able to get roots into our sewer pipe, and we were on about a ten-year cycle--the roots would get back enough to slow the sewer pipe, and we'd have to have it cleared. I doubt that it's very "green" of us, but yeah, we flushed copper sulfate crystals down the toilet periodically to try to keep the roots killed.

The washing machine was our "early warning" system. As flow through the main drain slowed, eventually we would start to see leaks at the basement washing machine during the drain cycle. That would tend to happen a little before seeing problems with our toilets. :)

The tree has since been euthanized. :)
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by bungalow10 »

The pump went out on my front loader, causing it to leak.

I bought a new pump for about $90 and put it in myself.
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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by jayars35 »

I have the braided stainless supply hoses for the washer and shut the valve(single lever between hot and cold) after each load. If I go away over night, I shut off the water at the wholehouse shut off valve. One of my friends had a washer hose burst when they were gone. Came back next morning and found it. Damage was over $20,000.

For the original question. At my old house, I had one leak around the seal at the top of the drum. Bought a new seal and replaced it. I also had to replace about 20 square feet of sub flooring and flooring, but was not a complicated job.

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Re: Ever had a washing machine leak or overflow?

Post by magellan »

Thanks for all the responses and useful info. I have to admit I'm a little shocked by how few 'no leak
votes we got in the poll, although there's probably a strong selection bias in terms of who's answering.

Anyhow, for me the action items were to buy an inexpensive water alarm to put on the floor by the washer (and in the basement by the oil burner/water heater) and to have DW shut off the supply valve when the washer is not in use (we already shut off water and release pressure in lines when we go away).

Also, I'll install that waterproof liner on the wall behind the washer to help direct any supply line bursts into the washer pan. It'll cost $5-15 and take less than an hour to install and it should help minimize the damage if there is an incident.

Jim
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