# Second Plumbing Emergency In A Week.



## DrumBob (Aug 17, 2014)

Last Sunday night, the hose that leads from the water source to the first floor toilet burst open and we had water all over the bathroom floor. A quick call to our plumber had him there in 15 minutes. An hour later and $250, and we were good to go.

Late this afternoon, I'm at the market and get a frantic phone call from the Mrs. that one of the hoses to the washing machine had ruptured. She got the water off, but not after it flooded nearly the entire left, unfinished side of the basement, where I keep cased up guitars, old videotapes and more. I rushed home, called the plumber again, and started mopping and bailing water with a dustpan...for nearly two hours, all the while moving stuff out of the way, lest it get soaked. I finally finished. Any wet spots have dried by now, or will be dry by the morning. My back is bothering me from bending down so much and I'm exhausted. 😖

The plumber is coming again tomorrow morning. I wonder how much it will cost me this time?

The joys of home ownership.

The house is over forty years old, so stuff wears out. I think I'll have him go over all the fixtures in the house for wear and tear.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

DrumBob said:


> Last Sunday night, the hose that leads from the water source to the first floor toilet burst open and we had water all over the bathroom floor. A quick call to our plumber had him there in 15 minutes. An hour later and $250, and we were good to go.
> 
> Late this afternoon, I'm at the market and get a frantic phone call from the Mrs. that one of the hoses to the washing machine had ruptured. She got the water off, but not after it flooded nearly the entire left, unfinished side of the basement, where I keep cased up guitars, old videotapes and more. I rushed home, called the plumber again, and started mopping and bailing water with a dustpan...for nearly two hours, all the while moving stuff out of the way, lest it get soaked. I finally finished. Any wet spots have dried by now, or will be dry by the morning. My back is bothering me from bending down so much and I'm exhausted. 😖
> 
> ...


If it's a hose from the tap to the back of the washer they're relatively cheap and easy to replace yourself. Buy a set and replace both. If you'rew going to have him check for wear and tear have him check all the drains in the basement too. If your house is over 40 years old it's probably a good idea to have him clean and check the main sewer line to the street too.


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

Good thing somebody was home both times. Have you thought about changing all your hoses? Sounds like it's time.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

I use stainless steel braided hoses for the washing machine, they're not that expensive and better than the rubber units that come with the machine.
You can get then at any hardware store.

When you mention about the first incident and the toilet, did you mean a pipe that burst?
Has there been a surge in the water pressure in the area lately? Maybe get the plumber to check that.


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

I had a plumbing emergency back in the summer. My lower level bathroom had a pipe break in the wall behind the shower. The other side faces our rec room. It also took out the electric socket on the other side that made all the other sockets not work. I called my plumber, who happens to be my sons best friend from child hood that became a journeyman plumber about 2 years ago. He used to do work for me for free when he was an apprentice but now he is partners in the business with his brother so has to at least charge for parts. Total cost, he charged me $15 for parts. Then I had to get an electrician in who is a friend. I called him on a Sunday and due to the pandemic he wasn't doing much so he slipped on over and fixed everything up. Took him about an hour and a half and he charged me $30 for his time and the socket he had to replace.
I had to replace all the drywall on the wall so that was the biggest expense for. 3 panels of drywall tape and mud and my time. It sure is good to know tradesmen though.
A couple years ago I had a valve go in a washer that caused a flood in the laundry room. I found the part in Kitchener at a plumbing supply place for $25 and with a youtube video changed it out my self.
Repairman quoted me $400 approx over the phone.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

This is a very common mishap.

People go on vacation and don't bother turning off the feed tap to their clothes washing machines or toilettes.

So, those flex hoses remain under pressure. Many times people have replaced them with cheapo garbage hoses with questionable pressure and tensile ratings.
They return home to severe flooding damage.

My company is actually now penetrating that market. We have made our business with automotive hoses and tubes but we're working on diversifying that tendency.

Anyway, if you go away for a few days, close those shut off valves.


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## Guncho (Jun 16, 2015)

Milkman said:


> This is a very common mishap.
> 
> People go on vacation and don't bother turning off the feed tap to their clothes washing machines or toilettes.
> 
> ...


I would imagine the percentage of people who do that is very very small.


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## ZeroGravity (Mar 25, 2016)

Guncho said:


> I would imagine the percentage of people who do that is very very small.


Yep, and that's one reason along with things like fire, break-ins etc. why insurance companies have clauses that say that if you are away for XX amount of time the dwelling must be checked on a regular basis to be covered if something happened. We looked after a friends cottage and had to check every 6 weeks. We did and sent a email as proof to keep things legit in case something happened. A lot of people don't know they have to have the same thing done in town if they go away for extended periods like snowbirds.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Guncho said:


> I would imagine the percentage of people who do that is very very small.


You are correct. Generally it's people who have already had it happen to them who start that practice.

And, it's not just the hoses that can fail.

I had a fitting inside a washing machine succumb to the pressure and it kept filling up. Fortunately it just flowed into the drain in that case.

It's worth it to pay a few bucks more for a decent hose.


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## ZeroGravity (Mar 25, 2016)

Milkman said:


> You are correct. Generally it's people who have already had it happen to them who start that practice.
> 
> And, it's not just the hoses that can fail.
> 
> ...


Most washing machines have cheap ass plastic fitting now instead of brass, easy to cross thread if you don't pay attention. Also every now and again you hear of a toilet that spontaneous cracks as well. Rare but it happens.


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## Guncho (Jun 16, 2015)

ZeroGravity said:


> Yep, and that's one reason along with things like fire, break-ins etc. why insurance companies have clauses that say that if you are away for XX amount of time the dwelling must be checked on a regular basis to be covered if something happened. We looked after a friends cottage and had to check every 6 weeks. We did and sent a email as proof to keep things legit in case something happened. A lot of people don't know they have to have the same thing done in town if they go away for extended periods like snowbirds.


My home insurance policy doesn't say anything like this.


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## ZeroGravity (Mar 25, 2016)

Guncho said:


> My home insurance policy doesn't say anything like this.


I don't mean to imply _every_ policy has this, but certainly a lot do and people find out that it is buried deep in the fine print after something happens,

Hello, we had a pipe burst in our house

Ok sir, when did this happen?

It happened while we were in Florida sometime

OK sir, and how long were you away sir?

About 8 weeks

Oh OK sir, and when did someone last check the house?

Check the house? No one checked while we were away.

Well sir your policy states that you have to have your house checked, unfortunately we cannot cover this........


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## Guncho (Jun 16, 2015)

ZeroGravity said:


> I don't mean to imply _every_ policy has this, but certainly a lot do and people find out that it is buried deep in the fine print after something happens,
> 
> Hello, we had a pipe burst in our house
> 
> ...


I'm not convinced a lot of policies say this. Does yours? Screenshot?

Mine says if I have an indoor pool or indoor hot tub, someone has to check to make sure the heat to the house is still on but that's about it.


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## ZeroGravity (Mar 25, 2016)

Guncho said:


> I'm not convinced a lot of policies say this. Does yours? Screenshot?


I am not going to debate this with you. It's a PSA and sucks to find out the hard way


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## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

I watched a show on washer mishaps years ago. They said the hoses should be replaced every year. The ones with the metal reinforcement are no better than the plain rubber ones. Another thing the show highlighted was a device that detects water on the floor and automatically shuts off the water to the washer. It is expensive, but compared to having gallons and gallons of water pumping out onto the floor it is cheap I guess.


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## Guncho (Jun 16, 2015)

ZeroGravity said:


> I am not going to debate this with you. It's a PSA and sucks to find out the hard way


I'm not looking for a debate either but I honestly think this is an urban legend.

You're the one saying it. Does your policy say this?


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Guncho said:


> I'm not looking for a debate either but I honestly think this is an urban legend.
> 
> You're the one saying it. Does your policy say this?



Whether or not your insurance covers it is important of course, but there are things that no amount of money can replace as I'm sure you'll agree.

Yes, it's better if the heavy lifting of cost is borne by your insurance company, but rest assured, you will ultimately pay for the cost of that repair in the form of gradually increasing premiums.

At the end of the day, I'm sure we'll all agree that it's better to prevent than to mitigate after the fact.


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

Guncho said:


> I'm not convinced a lot of policies say this. Does yours? Screenshot?
> 
> Mine says if I have an indoor pool or indoor hot tub, someone has to check to make sure the heat to the house is still on but that's about it.



Yeah I'm skeptical of this as well. What right does my insurance company have to tell me I have to turn my house keys over to someone so that they can enter my house while I'm away. So if I don't want to do that my insurance company won't cover me? Will the insurance company cover me if I turn my keys over to someone I thought I could trust that had a party in my house while I was gone and caused extensive damage? Will they cover me if said person enters my dwelling and because there was a flood slipped and sustained serious injury? 
I've never turned the main water off when leaving for holidays but after reading this post I'll be putting that on my check list of things to do.


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## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

Washing Machine Leak Alarm & Automatic Water Shut-Off System with Integrated Outlet Box


The FloodMaster RS-090-E automatically turns off the water supply when a washing machine leaks or hose breaks, mitigating potentially catastrophic damage.




reliancedetection.com


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

player99 said:


> I watched a show on washer mishaps years ago. They said the hoses should be replaced every year. The ones with the metal reinforcement are no better than the plain rubber ones. Another thing the show highlighted was a device that detects water on the floor and automatically shuts off the water to the washer. It is expensive, but compared to having gallons and gallons of water pumping out onto the floor it is cheap I guess.



Luckily my laundry room is setup for minimal damage due to flooding as long as the flooding isn't too catastrophic. The flooring is good quality click floor and has suffered about 3 different floods in the last 2 years without any damage. I woke up to a flood about a year ago due to the hot water tank breaking leaving about 3 inches of water all over the laundry room.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

guitarman2 said:


> Yeah I'm skeptical of this as well. What right does my insurance company have to tell me I have to turn my house keys over to someone so that they can enter my house while I'm away. So if I don't want to do that my insurance company won't cover me? Will the insurance company cover me if I turn my keys over to someone I thought I could trust that had a party in my house while I was gone and caused extensive damage? Will they cover me if said person enters my dwelling and because there was a flood slipped and sustained serious injury?
> I've never turned the main water off when leaving for holidays but after reading this post I'll be putting that on my check list of things to do.


Closing the main shut off valve is great. If it's a really cold winter and there's any chance of the furnace failing (there's ALWAYS a chance), draining the water from the lines after you close the valve may be a good plan as well.


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## Guncho (Jun 16, 2015)

Our washer is directly a floor above my guitars and computer and the hot water heater is in the room beside my guitar room. It would be devastating if either flooded. I should really get a couple of milk crates or something to put my guitar cases on so they are off the floor a bit and turn the water off when we go on vacation.


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

ZeroGravity said:


> Yep, and that's one reason along with things like fire, break-ins etc. why insurance companies have clauses that say that if you are away for XX amount of time the dwelling must be checked on a regular basis to be covered if something happened. We looked after a friends cottage and had to check every 6 weeks. We did and sent a email as proof to keep things legit in case something happened. A lot of people don't know they have to have the same thing done in town if they go away for extended periods like snowbirds.


My policy requires that if I go away for more than 72 hours, I have to have someone check the house - unless I turn off the water at the main valve. I don't know what the consequences are if I don't. If I turn off the water, I can go away indefinitely.


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## Moosehead (Jan 6, 2011)

As a property manager I have provided service for check ins while folks are away on holiday. It is a fact some policies state the must be checked if unoccupied for xxx period of time.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Guncho said:


> I'm not convinced a lot of policies say this. Does yours? Screenshot?
> 
> Mine says if I have an indoor pool or indoor hot tub, someone has to check to make sure the heat to the house is still on but that's about it.











Do I Need to Have My Home Checked While on Holiday? - Lanes Insurance Inc.


Vacations and holidays are a great way to beat the winter blues, but beyond arranging your flight, booking your hotel and packing your bags, you also shouldn’t forget to check the exclusions detailed in your home insurance coverage. If you’re planning to be away for an extended period of time...




www.lanesinsurance.com


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## Guncho (Jun 16, 2015)

Electraglide said:


> Do I Need to Have My Home Checked While on Holiday? - Lanes Insurance Inc.
> 
> 
> Vacations and holidays are a great way to beat the winter blues, but beyond arranging your flight, booking your hotel and packing your bags, you also shouldn’t forget to check the exclusions detailed in your home insurance coverage. If you’re planning to be away for an extended period of time...
> ...


I'm with The Co-Operators and there is no mention of anything like this in our policy.

Does your home insurance policy mention this?


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Milkman said:


> This is a very common mishap.
> 
> People go on vacation and don't bother turning off the feed tap to their clothes washing machines or toilettes.
> Anyway, if you go away for a few days, close those shut off valves.


I've never done that. Doesn't matter if I'm going away for a day or two or a month. Unplug the coffee maker and make sure the stove is turned off and that's about it. Having pets and at the house mail delivery has someone at the house atleast once every 2 days anyway. I don't recall ever having a connection hose to a toilet burst....seals leak, yup but burst nope but I can see the cheap ones doing that, especially with age. Same with washer hoses.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

guitarman2 said:


> Luckily my laundry room is setup for minimal damage due to flooding as long as the flooding isn't too catastrophic. The flooring is good quality click floor and has suffered about 3 different floods in the last 2 years without any damage. I woke up to a flood about a year ago due to the hot water tank breaking leaving about 3 inches of water all over the laundry room.


Every house I've owned or have stayed in there's been a drain in the laundry room floor. That covers the hot water tanks too. Had a valve go in a washer once and there was almost no water build up.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

bw66 said:


> My policy requires that if I go away for more than 72 hours, I have to have someone check the house - unless I turn off the water at the main valve. I don't know what the consequences are if I don't. If I turn off the water, I can go away indefinitely.


Do you have the special key for the main shut off. The last place I owned that was in the middle of the driveway.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Electraglide said:


> I've never done that. Doesn't matter if I'm going away for a day or two or a month. Unplug the coffee maker and make sure the stove is turned off and that's about it. Having pets and at the house mail delivery has someone at the house atleast once every 2 days anyway. I don't recall ever having a connection hose to a toilet burst....seals leak, yup but burst nope but I can see the cheap ones doing that, especially with age. Same with washer hoses.



I suppose most people have never had it happen, but ask those who have....particularly if there's no drain in the basement floor and no sump pump. You might be surprised at how few homes have those.

I wouldn't expect a feel good story.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

Electraglide said:


> Do you have the special key for the main shut off. The last place I owned that was in the middle of the driveway.


you should have a shutoff inside the house, first thing usually after the pipe comes out of the ground


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Electraglide said:


> Do you have the special key for the main shut off. The last place I owned that was in the middle of the driveway.


There's a main shut off valve just after the feed line enters my home. It was a typical valve with the replaceable seal. I replaced the valve with a nice stainless steel ball valve.

I plumbed my house so I installed good shut off valves at every appliance, including the outside hose outlet.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Guncho said:


> I'm with The Co-Operators and there is no mention of anything like this in our policy.
> 
> Does your home insurance policy mention this?


Last place I owned the insurance was thru the TD and I believe it did. I recall it was once every 7 days. Best bet is for you to call your insurance guy.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

vadsy said:


> you should have a shutoff inside the house, first thing usually after the pipe comes out of the ground


When the city changed over to a radio type water meter that was inside the house I had the guys add a shut off valve there. The old meter was inside the house. The water came into the house about 4' below ground level. Before that there wasn't an inside shut off valve.. Theree were some secondary valves but they probably hadn't been used in at least 10 years and were stuck open. the sinks, baths/showers and toilets each had their own shut offs. The house was built in '62 so there might not have been a main one.....same with the house we rented before buying which was built in the '30s. That shut off was outside and took a special wrench that we never got but a pipe wrench or vise grips worked.....sometimes.


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

Electraglide said:


> Every house I've owned or have stayed in there's been a drain in the laundry room floor. That covers the hot water tanks too. Had a valve go in a washer once and there was almost no water build up.



Yes I have a drain in my laundry floor but its really slow for some reason so when a flood happens depending on how bad it can get quite deep before it drains.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

guitarman2 said:


> Yes I have a drain in my laundry floor but its really slow for some reason so when a flood happens depending on how bad it can get quite deep before it drains.


I guess it depends on the age of the home and maybe even the neighborhood. I know on my side of the street the homes mostly have basements, but right across the street (same street) none of the houses do.

No drains in our basement.


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

building codes are obviously very different across Canada.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

Lincoln said:


> building codes are obviously very different across Canada.


and I'm guessing age of the build has a lot to do with it with codes changing. plus homeowners and their weekend renovations moving stuff around not knowing better, ..,_the drain is now in the Rec room, washer and dryer are in the closet_


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

guitarman2 said:


> Yes I have a drain in my laundry floor but its really slow for some reason so when a flood happens depending on how bad it can get quite deep before it drains.


Have someone come out and clean the sewage lines right to the street. Depending on how old the house is there could be roots or other things plugging things up. 


Lincoln said:


> building codes are obviously very different across Canada.


And over the years. When the house I have/had in Red Deer was built the codes were a lot different than they are now. When it was built it was outside the city limits.


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## SWLABR (Nov 7, 2017)

Yikes!! I feel your pain! 
We are rural, so we are on a pump. A couple weeks ago the main pipe to the well burst! it was after the pump, but _before_ the shut off. Who designed it like that should be dragged out to fix it at any given time regardless of time of day, or how old it all is. It's literally 4" of pipe, but dumb as F**K!! So the thing was pulling water out of the well to feed the system, but there was no "full". It just pumped, and pumped! I'm handy, but that one is beyond me. The plumber was also stunned. He rejigged it and all is OK, but it ran unnoticed for God knows how long so all that high pressure water hit the wall across it, up the open ceiling of the utility room, over onto the other side of the hung ceiling, under the floor of the neighboring washroom...Thankfully, no damage that needs immediate fixing. We got the dehumidifiers and ran them for a few days. And, lucky it was winter and the furnace was blowing. If this was summer, and all that damp just sat there, I don't want to even think about it. 

That little expense is gonna seriously impact my GAS wish list! 

As for the going away stuff, yes, we close off mains and some electrical while we are away beyond the normal. The hot water heater is a good one. Shut the water to it if the bottom rusts out, and shut off the electrical to protect the element.


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

Milkman said:


> Closing the main shut off valve is great. If it's a really cold winter and there's any chance of the furnace failing (there's ALWAYS a chance), draining the water from the lines after you close the valve may be a good plan as well.


if freezing is a concern, its actually better to leave a tap open to drip, to prevent freezing in the line in the event that you didnt drain it completely. Although low spots in the line will probably be where the mishap occurs.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Diablo said:


> if freezing is a concern, its actually better to leave a tap open to drip, to prevent freezing in the line in the event that you didnt drain it completely.


Really?

WHy?

If you close the main shut off valve right inside the house, empty the lines by opening the lowest faucet in the house (and a couple of others for good measure) there's not much left to freeze.


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

player99 said:


> I watched a show on washer mishaps years ago. They said the hoses should be replaced every year. The ones with the metal reinforcement are no better than the plain rubber ones. Another thing the show highlighted was a device that detects water on the floor and automatically shuts off the water to the washer. It is expensive, but compared to having gallons and gallons of water pumping out onto the floor it is cheap I guess.


seems excessive.
I personally would aim more for every 5-10 years.

stupid new homes (like ours) have upstairs laundry rooms. how ours ever got past code without a floor drain is beyond me.
they were smarter/less lazy in the old days when laundry rooms were placed in the basement, logically where there also are floor drains. men get blamed for wars, killing etc but this is a problem that can be put squarely on the shoulders of women.


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

Milkman said:


> Really?
> 
> WHy?
> 
> If you close the main shut off valve right inside the house, empty the lines by opening the lowest faucet in the house (and a couple of others for good measure) there's not much left to freeze.


I assume pipe bursts happen when the water freezes and expands as well as the pressure of a full pipe. If the pipes have been emptied, even with just a little water in places freezing, I can't imagine any damage as it wouldn't expand enough to burst the pipe and the pressure on the pipe would be very low. Am I understanding this wrong?


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## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

Diablo said:


> seems excessive.
> I personally would aim more for every 5-10 years.
> 
> stupid new homes (like ours) have upstairs bathrooms. how ours ever got past code without a floor drain is beyond me.
> they were smarter/less lazy in the old days when laundry rooms were placed in the basement, logically where there also are floor drains. men get blamed for wars, killing etc but this is a problem that can be put squarely on the shoulders of women.


There is supposed to be floor drains in bathrooms? I had someone put a new bathroom on my 2nd floor, no floor drain.


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

Milkman said:


> Really?
> 
> WHy?
> 
> If you close the main shut off valve right inside the house, empty the lines by opening the lowest faucet in the house (and a couple of others for good measure) there's not much left to freeze.


why? because things in practice dont always work perfectly in real life, esp when us amateurs are doing it. lines dont always drain completely, you get bubbles, gurgles, sags in the line and other anomalies.
the only way to be sure its drained would be to blow it out with compressed air, but who does that?
Well, cottagers often do. and its not just for fun. or you can leave your taps etc open instead and while not as reliable as blowing your lines, its better than leaving taps/valves shut (after the master valve). where freezing is concerned there is zero benefit to preventing even minimal water from moving in a confined space by closing taps/valves.
you learn a few things about plumbing when you own a cottage, sometimes, the hard way.


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

player99 said:


> There is supposed to be floor drains in bathrooms? I had someone put a new bathroom on my 2nd floor, no floor drain.


no, laundry room.

oops i see i wrote bathroom when i meant laundry. my bad for the confusion.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Diablo said:


> why? because things in practice dont always work perfectly in real life, esp when us amateurs are doing it. lines dont always drain completely, you get bubbles, gurgles, sags in the line and other anomalies.
> the only way to be sure its drained would be to blow it out with compressed air, but who does that?
> Well, cottagers often do. and its not just for fun. or you can leave your taps etc open instead and while not as reliable as blowing your lines, its better than leaving taps/valves shut (after the master valve).
> you learn a few things about plumbing when you own a cottage, sometimes, the hard way.


Well, I'm pretty confident I can eliminate enough water from the lines in my house that even if the remaining water froze solid there would be plenty of room for the expansion to avoid any damage. In other words, you don't have to drain every drop, just allow enough room for expansion.

But, to each their own. While I understand the idea of leaving a tap running to avoid freezing, that makes me more nervous (knowing a tap is running) than my option.


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

Milkman said:


> Well, I'm pretty confident I can eliminate enough water from the lines in my house that even if the remaining water froze solid there would be plenty of room for the expansion to avoid any damage.
> 
> But, to each their own. While I understand the idea of leaving a tap running to avoid freezing, that makes me more nervous (knowing a tap is running) than my option.


just to be clear, i said/meant that the tap is open/"running" while the main valve is closed.
what would you be afraid of from that?

also know that when you close valves/taps, you create a vacuum in that space which prevents the natural exit of the water and thats why it may not drain completely, or may burst if trapped and frozen.

suit yourself as to your confidence but even the best of us have said after the fact, we "...thought we got them all...".


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Diablo said:


> just to be clear, i said/meant that the tap is "running" while the main valve is closed.
> what would you be afraid of from that?
> 
> also know that when you close valves/taps, you create a vacuum in that space which prevents the natural exit of the water and thats why it may not drain completely, or may burst if trapped and frozen.


I wouldn't be afraid of that at all. Why would a tap in the house be "running" if the main shut off is closed, LOL? If so, call a plumber because your shut off valve is not working properly.

I've replumbed my entire house so I know that when I shut off the main valve leading into the house and then open a couple of the lowest taps in the house, almost all of the water drains out. You have to watch when you open things back up because of water hammer but there's no taps to leave "running".


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## Guncho (Jun 16, 2015)

He means leave them in the open position. 

Jeese louis.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Guncho said:


> He means leave them in the open position.
> 
> Jeese louis.


Ok, running means something different to me I guess.

My taps are left in the open position too, but it doesn't matter because nothing is getting to them when I close the main valve.

Jeez Louise, LOL!


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## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

Ooof.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Milkman said:


> Ok, running means something different to me I guess.
> 
> My taps are left in the open position too, but it doesn't matter because nothing is getting to them when I close the main valve.
> 
> Jeez Louise, LOL!


Sorry fellas, I sense that I'm being a bit of a dick here.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

now thats a bingo


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

Electraglide said:


> Have someone come out and clean the sewage lines right to the street. Depending on how old the house is there could be roots or other things plugging things up.
> 
> And over the years. When the house I have/had in Red Deer was built the codes were a lot different than they are now. When it was built it was outside the city limits.


Ah, the magic words "outside the city", which also means "built without any inspections". 

I commented because the only houses I've ever seen without at least 1 floor drain the basement are houses old enough to have been built before plumbing was even a thing. Usually in those houses, the sewer line went out a wall, not the floor at all.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Lincoln said:


> Ah, the magic words "outside the city", which also means "built without any inspections".
> 
> I commented because the only houses I've ever seen without at least 1 floor drain the basement are houses old enough to have been built before plumbing was even a thing. Usually in those houses, the sewer line went out a wall, not the floor at all.


My place is just over 100 years old.


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

Milkman said:


> My place is just over 100 years old.


wow, I did not except to hear something like that! Not much left in Alberta that's a hundred years old unless it's brick. Has your place been pretty much modernized as far as electrical and plumbing goes? I can understand now why you shut your water off when you go away. Good plan.


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

Has anyone seen what a ruptured hot water tank does? After the initial "wave" of 40 or 50 gallons of water getting loose, there's a 3/4" pipe feeding them that continues to gush. Makes one hell of a mess in a big hurry. Good Times!


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

Lincoln said:


> Has anyone seen what a ruptured hot water tank does? After the initial "wave" of 40 or 50 gallons of water getting loose, there's a 3/4" pipe feeding them that continues to gush. Makes one hell of a mess in a big hurry. Good Times!


Yup. +25 and Jungle humidity inside, -20 outside. Say goodbye to everything wood, say hello to mold


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

An FYI, The floor drain in an upstairs laundry room isn't attached to the plumbing system. If it was, the water in the P-trap would quickly evaporate from not being used, allowing sewer gases to escape into the laundry room. Laundry room floor drains run thru pipes, down the walls, into the basement where they dump, usually beside or above a basement floor drain. Easily added when moving a laundry to the main floor or upstairs.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Lincoln said:


> wow, I did not except to hear something like that! Not much left in Alberta that's a hundred years old unless it's brick. Has your place been pretty much modernized as far as electrical and plumbing goes? I can understand now why you shut your water off when you go away. Good plan.


Mine is double brick. Much of the basics have already been replaced and what remains is on my to do list.

Next on the list in the spring is the roof. With an old place like this it's always a work in progress, but we've done a lot with the old girl.

The plumbing is not really an issue. It has all been replaced.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Lincoln said:


> Ah, the magic words "outside the city", which also means "built without any inspections".
> 
> I commented because the only houses I've ever seen without at least 1 floor drain the basement are houses old enough to have been built before plumbing was even a thing. Usually in those houses, the sewer line went out a wall, not the floor at all.


I don't know if Red Deer County had inspections back then or not but both in and out of the city there was codes so they probably did have inspections. The city boundry at the time was about a 3 blocks and the house was within the county. We're talking '62 and I believe the city boundries moved in '65. The house the ex grew up in and her dad built in '54 was two houses inside the city limits. There had been 3 drains in the basement but somewhere along the way in the '90s a bathroom and shower was added to the basement and the shower took over the one floor drain.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Lincoln said:


> An FYI, The floor drain in an upstairs laundry room isn't attached to the plumbing system. If it was, the water in the P-trap would quickly evaporate from not being used, allowing sewer gases to escape into the laundry room. Laundry room floor drains run thru pipes, down the walls, into the basement where they dump, usually beside or above a basement floor drain. Easily added when moving a laundry to the main floor or upstairs.


One thing that comes in handy is having a drain of some sort near the hot water tank. Makes it easy to flush out the tank every year or two.


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## DrumBob (Aug 17, 2014)

To clarify, what broke off on the toilet was the hose from the water supply to the toilet. I turned off the main water shutoff before it got too bad. The plumber changed both hoses connected to the washer today. In both cases, we used metal hoses. 

While he was here, we had him check the plumbing on our well tank. Everything is extremely old and corroded, so this week, we are replacing not only all the plumbing, but the tank as well, as it's been in place for over thirty years. We don't want any more watery surprises. Considering all the instruments I have in the basement, it's smart that we do this. 

Let's hope there's never a catastrophe, but if there is, our insurance will cover loss.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

DrumBob said:


> To clarify, what broke off on the toilet was the hose from the water supply to the toilet. I turned off the main water shutoff before it got too bad. The plumber changed both hoses connected to the washer today. In both cases, we used metal hoses.
> 
> While he was here, we had him check the plumbing on our well tank. Everything is extremely old and corroded, so this week, we are replacing not only all the plumbing, but the tank as well, as it's been in place for over thirty years. We don't want any more watery surprises. Considering all the instruments I have in the basement, it's smart that we do this.
> 
> Let's hope there's never a catastrophe, but if there is, our insurance will cover loss.


You're on a well? If so and going by where you are do you have a water softener and filters hooked up. Probably not in the same aquifier but the place I stayed at in Chester Vt. for around 6 months was old and on a well. Water was hard and usually gritty if everything wasn't kept clean. As far as insurance goes considering where you are, that's a completely different ball game than up here. I would go over your policy very closely.


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## Paul M (Mar 27, 2015)

Years ago my neighbour had a water problem with the service to the house. It was winter, and for some reason the utility was unable to fix the problem quickly. They ended up connecting our outside hose bib to their hose bib with a big garden hose. To prevent freezing they had to leave the tap in the laundry tub running. This went on for months. 

Neither house got a water bill for 3 or 4 months.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Paul M said:


> Years ago my neighbour had a water problem with the service to the house. It was winter, and for some reason the utility was unable to fix the problem quickly. They ended up connecting our outside hose bib to their hose bib with a big garden hose. To prevent freezing they had to leave the tap in the laundry tub running. This went on for months.
> 
> Neither house got a water bill for 3 or 4 months.


One of the condos across the street had a water problem so where did they get the water from for about 30 units.....from two fire hydrants. One on either side of the street so there was a 2" hose protected by 2"x4"s and covered with tar going across the street from the one hydrant. That lasted about 2 weeks until they got the problem fixed.


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

Paul M said:


> Years ago my neighbour had a water problem with the service to the house. It was winter, and for some reason the utility was unable to fix the problem quickly. They ended up connecting our outside hose bib to their hose bib with a big garden hose. To prevent freezing they had to leave the tap in the laundry tub running. This went on for months.
> 
> Neither house got a water bill for 3 or 4 months.


I've seen the power company do that too. Run a big extension cord from one house's meter socket, to the next house's meter socket to restore power when an underground service cable breaks or messes up


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Having lived in an old house for a good portion of my adult life, if I was building from scratch, I would do some things very differently than the builder of my old place did.

But, as with most things, it's easy to be tall, when you stand on the shoulders of giants.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Milkman said:


> Having lived in an old house for a good portion of my adult life, if I was building from scratch, I would do some things very differently than the builder of my old place did.
> 
> But, as with most things, it's easy to be tall, when you stand on the shoulders of giants.


The house I grew up in from '55 to '63 was built in 1865 so around 100 years old then. It's still standing and still being lived in with not a lot of changes made tho I think they took the large water tank out of the second attic. I've never seen it from this point of view.








Vernon · British Columbia, Canada


British Columbia, Canada




www.google.ca


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

Electraglide said:


> The house I grew up in from '55 to '63 was built in 1865 so around 100 years old then. It's still standing and still being lived in with not a lot of changes made tho I think they took the large water tank out of the second attic. I've never seen it from this point of view.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


you grew up in a sprawling 1865 two-storey with a tennis court? must be nice


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

vadsy said:


> you grew up in a sprawling 1865 two-storey with a tennis court? must be nice


Had a tennis court, a very large fish pool (big enough for kids to swim in), a creek that was good for fishing in in the summer and skating on in the winter and it was 4 stories if you include the second attic as a floor....plus a full basement. Origionally when the house was built there was a couple of hundred acres but when the folks bought it there was only 20. Plenty of places around to drive and go partying. Was a good place to grow up.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

amazing. I mean it does look like new construction but it clearly held up well. they sure don't build them like they used to


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

vadsy said:


> amazing. I mean it does look like new construction but it clearly held up well. they sure don't build them like they used to


Those trees were a fair bit smaller back when we climbed them and I don't think those are the shingles dad and some of the guys he worked with put on. I'd say it's held up well and for the most part the area hasn't developed too much. I know that the beams and such were large pieces of wood logged in the area. You don't get anything like that now. When he was building his house my younger brother got the floor beams and flooring and a lot of the lumber he used from an old hotel they were tearing down that was built around the same time.


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## 1SweetRide (Oct 25, 2016)

DrumBob said:


> Last Sunday night, the hose that leads from the water source to the first floor toilet burst open and we had water all over the bathroom floor. A quick call to our plumber had him there in 15 minutes. An hour later and $250, and we were good to go.
> 
> Late this afternoon, I'm at the market and get a frantic phone call from the Mrs. that one of the hoses to the washing machine had ruptured. She got the water off, but not after it flooded nearly the entire left, unfinished side of the basement, where I keep cased up guitars, old videotapes and more. I rushed home, called the plumber again, and started mopping and bailing water with a dustpan...for nearly two hours, all the while moving stuff out of the way, lest it get soaked. I finally finished. Any wet spots have dried by now, or will be dry by the morning. My back is bothering me from bending down so much and I'm exhausted. 😖
> 
> ...


One of my greatest fears. The copper pipe to the outside hose faucet runs across the top of my studio. The main valve for the house is beside my guitar collection and the washing machines are next door! This basement flooded when we first moved in (before I was into music) when the tree out front finally blocked the house drain. Then the upstairs flooded when overnight, the valve to the dishwasher busted and flooded the main floor. All the floors had to be replaced along with all the baseboards and a bunch of furniture.

In my condo before this, the upstairs neighbour's toilet overflowed and flooded half the apartment. I was away and came home to this huge mess. I knew something was wrong when I parked my car and the parking garage's ceiling was flowing with running water.

All of this required a huge effort to fix and even though some work was covered by insurance, the immediate cleanup and moving of furniture and bailing of water was all me.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

Electraglide said:


> Those trees were a fair bit smaller back when we climbed them and I don't think those are the shingles dad and some of the guys he worked with put on. I'd say it's held up well and for the most part the area hasn't developed too much. I know that the beams and such were large pieces of wood logged in the area. You don't get anything like that now. When he was building his house my younger brother got the floor beams and flooring and a lot of the lumber he used from an old hotel they were tearing down that was built around the same time.


well, whoever finished off the tennis court in 2015 did a great job,,. looks olympic regulation sized


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