How to Ensure Your Vacation Home Isn’t Wasting Water When You’re Away

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Posted on 20/10/2020 by Gabriel Halimi

You may think your vacation home is protected from water damage or water loss simply by turning off all the faucets and checking for leaks before heading home for the season. Nonetheless, your vacation home could be wasting water when you’re away. Here are a few tips to make sure your vacation home is secured even after you leave.

Turn off the main water supply

The absolute way to prevent water leakages is by turning off the main water valve. You can usually find this by the water meter itself, on your property near the street, under a metal lid by the street. If you can’t find it there and you have an older home, check near your water boiler, crawl spaces and your basement. If you need to learn more about where to find your water main and how it works, click here.

Turn off appliance valves

If you retain access to the water supply when you’re gone — for automated outdoor sprinklers, for example — take the next best step and turn off individual appliance valves. Shut off valves by the kitchen sink, toilet, washer, and anything else you won’t need in the coming months. It’s better for the environment, prevents growth of mold and mildew, and it’s better for your bills!

Turn off all appliance valves

Drain gutters, hoses and appliances

This has more to do with water damage than water loss per se, but also be sure to drain your gutters and the water lines to your appliances before you leave your vacation home. That means draining your AC hose before departing — even trace amounts of water left inside could eventually leak out.

Get a smart water monitor with remote automatic shutoff

Whether you choose to go with a low-cost leak sensor or a comprehensive water damage protection system for your vacation home, it’s up to your preferences, budget, and the level of protection you want to give your home.

Best recommended feature: Automatic Shutoff

In the event of a leak, some smart water security systems will automatically shut off the home's water to prevent catastrophic water damage. Although most smart water systems allow owners to remotely control their home's water using a smartphone app, what if you are in the shower or on a plane when you receive a critical alert? You may not always be available to shut off the water if you receive an alert for a leak. In the time it could take to realize your home is leaking water, the loss and damage may already be catastrophic. Systems with the automatic shutoff feature prioritize the home's wellbeing over the user's availability to respond in the app to shut off the water. Now, that's smarter plumbing!

Our #1 choice for Smart Water Security:

We recommend our very own Flo by Moen, which is the most rigorous Smart Home Water Security System currently on the market. Flo by Moen offers the industry-leading Smart Water Shutoff to proactive monitor the supply side of your home's plumbing for leaks and sends alert notifications via the Flo by Moen App. In the event that the Smart Water Shutoff detects a critical leak in your home plumbing system, it will automatically shut off the water to your home. Additionally, Flo by Moen offers all types of homeowners localized protection with the Smart Water Detector that can be used to catch fixture and drain-side leaks, or that can also be used as an environmental sensor to detect changes in temperature and humidity. You can also bundle and save on our Water Security Kits, available now.

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