Most of you have heard me talk about the importance of water alarms. Today technology has come a long way in protecting your home.
Water damage and mold cost the insurance industry $2.5 billion dollars per year, and the average cost of a home water damage insurance claim is $6,965.
Flooding damage and mold in homes are one of the most common claims on homeowners insurance According to the website water damage defense in 2013, insurance claims totaled 2.5 billion dollars in the US alone with the average repair costing almost $7000. The average repair due to all leaking appliances is $14,367.
The risks to your property are significant and one of the newest high tech tools is a WiFi water alarm. One of these is made by Delta. When leak detector encounters a leak, a message is sent over Wi-Fi to your email and/or mobile device alerting you to the leak. It also sounds an audible alarm, while the light ring at the top of the device flashes blue.
In addition, you can use a WiFi water shutoff valve to stop water supply leaks. Smart water monitoring and automatic shutoff systems send leak alerts, monitors temperature, and offers consumption information, notifies you over text or e-mail to alert you to potential leaks— you can send you a text or e-mail and shut-off your water. These systems can be expensive, but as you can see the costs associated with water damage can be huge!
More tips to prevent water damage to your home include:
- Watch your water bill. If your bill is unusually large with no other reasonable explanation you could have a leak.
- Check your water meter for leaks, it is easy to see if any water is passing through the meter and if everything is shut off in the home and the meter still runs, you have a leak.
- Always use the metal braided hoses for your washing machine, dishwashers, icemakers, sinks, and toilets. The average age of a washing machine hose that bursts are 8.7 years old.
- You can check to see if your toilet flapper valve leaks using food coloring
Sources: EPA.gov, waterdamagedefense.com, HomeDepot.com
