I usually go through the routine of winterizing the house before the start of every winter season. Despite this, I usually end up with one or two damaged water houses or leaky outside faucets. No big deal. Usually involves minor repair such as replacing washers. So I am used to that. What does not normally occur are leaky faucets inside the house during what is a warmer than normal winter. This tells me the problems have nothing to do with the weather.
A short background
There are days when I am not overwhelmed by daily or weekly activities that I may just spend a couple of minutes, hours just browsing through stores like BestBuy or The Home Depot. During one of these visits, I spied on a device that detects water leaks. A water leak alarm. I thought back then that since I have always gone to the basement, I did not really need this. Any flooding should be handled by the sump pump. Besides, since I live in a "once in a hundred year" flood zone up the side of a hill, when would the occasion for a flood occur?
Well a while back I mentioned that I had a faucet leak issue occur in the basement. I had to tighten that faucet really good to be able schedule a repair for the coming weekend. The next day, while again working in the basement, I heard what sounded like water in the shower. I quickly got up, went into the laundry room and there it was, the brass water Y-valve to the washing machine had sink broke, literally there was a crack on it. I quickly shut-off the valve and now had two items to work on during the weekend. This makes me wonder if this latest leak had just happened, or was it something I just missed a couple of days earlier? And this is not the first time this has happened. Barely three years ago the brass y-valve had also gone bad.
The Issue
So now the issue is this. On all occasions, I had been lucky enough to be in the basement when the problems occurred, the sump pump also worked. Now what if I didn't go down the basement for a few days, or the pump failed to work, what would have happened? Would potential damages be covered by regular home insurance or should I get flood insurance? Because of my location, flood insurance would not make sense. Maybe, I should invest $12.00 - $40.00 on a water leak alarm instead? What do you think?
Showing posts with label toilet leaks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label toilet leaks. Show all posts
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Check for Toilet Leaks
It is easy enough to check your faucets. Simply stare at the faucet for a few minutes and if you do not see water drip, then the faucet is likely fine. Toilets are another matter.
Most toilets do not leak in huge, easily visible ways. Sometimes it is like being a detective. You are sleeping at night then you suddenly hear the toilet refill. Did somebody just flush? You open you eyes but the lights are off, no light from the bathroom either, the bathroom door is open and there is no one in either. Was it a ghost? Well, since I tend not top believe in ghosts then it must be a leaky toilet. Of course, because most homes are constructed of what amounts to paper and wood, it is possible the toilet you heard came from outside your door, or even in the living room. The prudent thing to do would be the check everyone of them.
I check each toilet by taking a few minutes to stare at the waterline, looking for tell-tale signs of a constant flow of water. If I do not see anything I usually move on to the next. But what if you really suspect that toilet in the guest room but do not see those tell-tale signs, also called "Silent Leaks"? How do you get the suspect to talk without resorting to harsh interrogation techniques or prematurely jumping to a guilty verdict? Being a good detective who has done some of his homework, I know there is something in my bag of tricks that will do the job. In this case, it takes the form of a tablet, a coloring dye that will make the suspect talk and reveal whether it is the source of the leak, or not.
I have tried a couple of versions of these toilet leak dyes, like Blue Streak Pro 200. The way these work is that you put the tablets into the water tank. The dye dissolves and if there is a leak, you should find out in a few minutes. I have also used cheaper household items to color the water in the tank, things like orange juice or even coffee. OK, only coffee then. The principle is the same whether you use the dye or coffee. The end result is that you catch a leak before it starts costing more money than you care to spend.
Most toilets do not leak in huge, easily visible ways. Sometimes it is like being a detective. You are sleeping at night then you suddenly hear the toilet refill. Did somebody just flush? You open you eyes but the lights are off, no light from the bathroom either, the bathroom door is open and there is no one in either. Was it a ghost? Well, since I tend not top believe in ghosts then it must be a leaky toilet. Of course, because most homes are constructed of what amounts to paper and wood, it is possible the toilet you heard came from outside your door, or even in the living room. The prudent thing to do would be the check everyone of them.
I check each toilet by taking a few minutes to stare at the waterline, looking for tell-tale signs of a constant flow of water. If I do not see anything I usually move on to the next. But what if you really suspect that toilet in the guest room but do not see those tell-tale signs, also called "Silent Leaks"? How do you get the suspect to talk without resorting to harsh interrogation techniques or prematurely jumping to a guilty verdict? Being a good detective who has done some of his homework, I know there is something in my bag of tricks that will do the job. In this case, it takes the form of a tablet, a coloring dye that will make the suspect talk and reveal whether it is the source of the leak, or not.
I have tried a couple of versions of these toilet leak dyes, like Blue Streak Pro 200. The way these work is that you put the tablets into the water tank. The dye dissolves and if there is a leak, you should find out in a few minutes. I have also used cheaper household items to color the water in the tank, things like orange juice or even coffee. OK, only coffee then. The principle is the same whether you use the dye or coffee. The end result is that you catch a leak before it starts costing more money than you care to spend.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Schedule Regular Faucet Inspections
I recently came down into the basement to get some work done and notice a dripping noise. Since it was raining that day I did not pay too much attention to it. A day later, I could still hear the dripping noise yet it was no longer raining. After a quick search I found that the water was dripping. Who knows how long this had been occurring. If I had not gone down into the basement that day the dripping faucet could have gone unnoticed for months. An acquaintance of mine had a similar though far worst experience. His mother lived by herself, in a home with an unfinished basement. She never visits the basement without reason. On receiving her water bill she noticed a huge increase in the amount she must pay, so she visits her basement, and there she finds her water heater with huge water leak. Needless to say she was lucky. Her unfinished basement had actually allowed the water to drain away, the damage to her house could have been substantial. As for my water bill, I have not received it yet but I hope any increase would be minor.
As you can tell, if we my acquaintances mom and myself both regularly scheduled checks of our faucets, toilets or water heater, we could have caught the problems earlier. I do check the toilets and faucets we use on a daily basis but, regularly scheduled visits to those you do not regularly use is important. I have now added this to my calendar, to regularly check every three months all faucets, both inside, outside, and in the basement.
As you can tell, if we my acquaintances mom and myself both regularly scheduled checks of our faucets, toilets or water heater, we could have caught the problems earlier. I do check the toilets and faucets we use on a daily basis but, regularly scheduled visits to those you do not regularly use is important. I have now added this to my calendar, to regularly check every three months all faucets, both inside, outside, and in the basement.
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