Yes, turning off the water at the main valve would accomplish the same thing. I'm familiar with a family that had a line burst during an extended vacation doing many thousands of dollars worth of damage. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Thanks Mike! It seemed like shutting off the main water valve would accomplish the same thing, but I know that sometimes things aren't quite as simple as they appear, so I wanted to make sure.

Abbey

If you have a boiler fed by your main water supply you wouldn't want to turn it off in the wintertime lest you return to a lot of frozen pipes.

No boiler to worry about thank goodness! Most of my vacations are in the warmer weather which precludes the possibility of frozen pipes. But I appreciate the advice!

Abbey

Yes! Turn off the water. My friend's house was nearly destroyed by a flood in the house when they were away.

The most common sourse of water problems is ice maker lines that go through an attic. Ours doesn't and I have never shut off water even when we are gone for a couple of weeks.

Turing off your water is a very good idea. Back about 10 years as a firefighter, I responded to a home that was reported to have smoke coming out of the eaves. It turned out that it was steam. With the homeowner away for the weekend the hot water hose going to the washer sprang a small leak. Not a lot of water leaking but the hot water made steam, the steam filled entire the house. Everything in the house was ruined. The sheetrock swelled up and was coming off the walls and part of the ceiling had come down. The damage was unbelievable.
So, not only shut off your water but occasionally check the condition of your hoses and lines going to your sinks & stools.

You might want to cut the power to any plumbed-in devices that could be damaged if the water drained out of them. I unplug the instant-hot in the kitchen. And I turn the water heater down to minimum temperature ("vacation" setting). Would be even better to turn it off completely, but then I'd have to relight the pilot light to get it working again.

Yes most definitely turn off the water. We returned from a 4-day trip about 6 weeks ago to find a part in the tank of an upstairs toilet broke and the water flowed out of the tank. Entire flooring in the house (3600 sq ft), ceilings, walls, kitchen cabinets, appliances - all getting replaced. Our house looks like a war zone. I think it will be months before we move back in. That's one mistake we won't make again.

Scary. Our house is going to be unoccupied most of the winter, although we're going to be an hour and a half away, and my neighbours will look in on it. I'm in a cold area so the insurance co is pretty strict about it.

I put in a Floodstop shutoff, they market them as being installed next to your washing machine or water heater, but I put mine right after the water main shutoff. They're a full flow ball valve so, when open, offer no impediment to water flow. They have a battery backup as well as a plug adapter. You can also attach multiple sensors (sensors are very simple and you could make your own if you wanted) and place them in potential problem areas, and there's an output for an alarm system so it can trigger an alert. I really like it, and it does work.

I got mine from Aartech Canada, but you can get them from Amazon, Smarthome and other places.

The only alternative to daily (DAILY!) walk-throughs when the house is unoccupied according to the insurance co, UNLESS I drain all the appliances. I'm not sure what that really entails, but I'm assuming RV antifreeze in the bottom of the dishwasher, washing machine etc.

I'd be ok with that, but if I want to work on the house or whatever during the winter, I'd have to turn all the water back on.

If the water's shut off, obviously the HW heater needs to be turned off (gas, normally vented) but should I drain it? It has a vacuum breaker, and I'd leave hot taps on upstairs to ensure it has air flow into it.

Our water is very soft, which I'm sure is a good thing in this mothballing scenario.

I'm a plan-for-the-worst-hope-for-the-best type, so I'm progressively replacing all the sink and toilet shutoffs with ball valves, and putting in Floodsafe hoses. http://www.wattscanada.ca/pages/whatsnew/floodsafe_connectors.asp

I plan to have my alarm system installed, with smoke and heat detectors tied in, together with water and low temp detection, as well as intrusion, sometime during this time. There's some talk about doing a seasonal disconnect on the phone and internet, so that could pose some issues for the alarm communicating.

Here is a link that might be useful: Floodstop

If you're not already paranoid, I was looking at the hoses that were supplied with a new washing machine (I never use them, I always use the braided stainless ones) and was interested to note they had a "replace by" date on them!

Only around three years, too. I figured such hoses had a finite life and planned to replace them periodically, but I've never seen a date put on them. I wonder if that might become an issue with insurance companies?

Those floodstop things look pretty cool but would one really need to install so many? why not just at the main valve? and even then, if the main valve is turned off, no need for one at all, except just for when you're away at work. a lot of damage can happen in just a few hours.

Our son was in our house 2 days prior to our returning home, nothing was wrong at that point. Isn't it strange that these things never happen when you're home??!!

It is odd, but Murphy's law I guess.

You're right, the floodstop hoses aren't really going to help if you shut off the water main, but, like you said, when you go out just for a few hours it can happen.

Another essential piece of hardware we all need is a pressure regulator at the point of entry to the house - if there's some sort of issue with the water service, the pressure could go up enough to damage stuff, including split lines. I discovered the one in my house was faulty and my water pressure sat around 130 psi for who knows how long. Fortunately, all my stuff is copper and there was never an issue.

I actually have gauges in my mechanical room now. One before the proposed (not yet installed) water filter, one after. Not only does it show me the pressure of the supply, it'll show when the filter needs to be changed (when there's an appreciable difference between the supply, and the line after the filter.)

Meant to mention, the two most overlooked potential flood points are dishwashers, and washing machines.

I've seen a solenoid valve in a washing machine fail, fortunately I was home at the time. Lots of water in a short time.

Those handy box-in-the-wall things they have for washing machines now make shutting them off easy.

Years ago after Christmas break I went with my parents to take my sister back to college. My sister, bless her heart, instead of turning DOWN the thermostat on the way out the door, turned it to OFF. In Northern IL at New Year's, that was a problem. Two days later we came back to find the house at 25 degrees and the water frozen in the toilets. Miraculously, nothing broke. We thawed things out and went on our merry way.

Did you buy a lottery ticket after that? You should have...

DH is a plumber and insists on shutting off the water whenever we go out of town.

He gets calls regularly for pinhole leaks in copper pipes. I would hate to think what a pinhole leak could do in a couple weeks unnoticed.

He also turns off the breaker for the water heater, but that is more for energy saving than anything else.

want to carry this just a little safer??

turn the water off..using the valve or a switch(well pump owners)..

then...

flush a toilet..that's right lower the pressure in the pipes.its easy to do..

hey after 10yrs in the handyman business and all the problems a simple water leak can cause, we now turn our water pump off before we leave for a weekend.

-dkenny

That's exactly what I did with the floodstop automatic valve, it makes the most sense to put it at the main shutoff, and just run remote sensors to the problem areas.

Good call on the flushing trick, do it at the lowest level you can in the house.

One possible problem with turning off the well pump: If you have a well pit with a sump pump, and the sump pump is on the same circuit as the well pump, then you'll be shutting off the sump pump too.

Is below steps fine ? I am too paranoid about disturbing pressure in pipes and the extra precaution causing problem then benefits

Before going to vacation
========================

* Turn off water at main either at street access point or house access point
* Flush a toilet to lower pressure
* Put water heater on vacation mode
* Put house heater at 55-60 range

Coming back
===========
* Drain all pipes by opening all faucets and then leave only two faucets open one at higher level in house and one at lower level in house
* Turn on main water supply
* Put heater back on warm or hot setting

I want to shut off the water while on vacation. Do I need to turn the gas off on water heater. ( evaporation or no ? )

Some years back I read that, in terms of total dollars, home insurance companies annually paid out more for claims resulting from burst washing machine hoses than any other type of homeowner insurance claim.
I've done some remodeling in the last few years, and I always spend the extra bucks for the braided steel supply lines for sinks, toilets, dishwashers, and fridge supply lines.

I know four people who had leak disasters because of toilet fill hose failures (the tube from the wall or floor to the toilet tank). Two happened while on vacation, the other two while out for the day or sleeping. Haven't heard of anyone with washing machine hose failures, for what that's worth. Personally I think a whole-house leak detection system like Leak Defense makes a lot of sense. It detects water flow above a user-set threshold, for more than a user-set length of time. There are different settings for "Home" mode and "Away" mode. If water flows for too long, it closes a valve on the main inlet line. The control panel is near the entrance door, and we put it into Away mode when leaving even for a little while. It's given me some peace-of-mind.

A lot of people are saying to turn off the water main when you're going to be away. That's fine - until you return and turn the water back ON. The sudden repressurization of the line can result in an air-hammer and burst hoses UNLESS you turn off the supply valves at the washing machine as well. If the supply valves at the machine are turned off, the air-hammer won't strain the rubber hose when the main is turned back on. Either way, when you turn the water back on, do it slowly to minimize the air-hammer effect, preferably with both the main shut off and the local supply lines at the washing machine.

Hi Donny, Thanks for that suggestion. I am one of those paranoid homeowners so I always turn off the supply valves at the washing machine after I use it. I also replaced the rubber hoses with braided aluminum so I think I will be ok. But that is another reason for me to continue shutting off those hoses after the wash is done. Better safe than sorry.

It's a good idea to cycle valves anyway, especially if you have hard water. Mineral deposits can cake up a valve so bad that you can't turn it when you have to!

My sis in law recently had a hose from their shallow well pump let go in their vacation home in eastern Ontario. The cottage is basically a complete rebuild including some floor joists and all flooring, insulation and drywall.. 5000 litres of water from the cistern poured into the cottage. I always switch the pump to off if we are away overnight. Also select the hot water tank to vacation mode if away for a longer period.. When Mom and Dad were Snowbirds I went to check the home and the relief valve from the HW tank popped open. The basement was full of steam. No damage as the drain was open on the basement floor and it couldn't have been long since the steam was only in the basement when I got there. I did buy a lottery ticket but didn't win nada.

We went for six weeks vacation this summer.We shut off the main water supply valve before we left without making any changes on the gas water heater.

When we get back our front load washing machine was filled with water that was leaking out to the expensive wooden kitchen cabinet all the time we were away which caused apparent and sever damage to the base of the cabinet.

What worst when we returned and without knowing we opened the door of the machine and you can imagine what happened to all the rugs in the family room and the bar area!!

How to explain this disaster???

Certainly we were very lucky that we did not have additional damages, yet the damage was substantial and thinking of what could have happened is very scary knowing about what happened to other people because of the burst water hoses.....etc

As for now, what actions should be taken in term of plumbing, and steps we have to take next time before we leave for long vacation to avoid such conditions?

We deeply appreciate your valuable comments.

Thank you

Are you saying that your washing machine mysteriously filled with water during your vacation?

When the main water supply is shut off there is still pressure and water in the pipes inside the house. If the washing machine had a leaky fill valve and depending on where it was at it in the house, it might fill with water.

After shutting off the main water supply it might not be a bad idea to open a few faucets to release the pressure and drain some of the water. Ideally one at the lowest level of the house and one at the highest level to let air in.

I'm surprised that much water would come out of the water heater unless it is higher than the washing machine. Are you sure it was hot water? Is it possible the main water shutoff for the house did not close completely? If you have hard water and had not operated the valve for a long time, it may have been crusted up with mineral deposits and still allowed some water through.

The main problem though is the washing machine, so hopefully you are fixing that. If it had not malfunctioned in the first place, this would not have happened.

I will be gone from home for 5 weeks. I plan on turning off the main water valve at the street. I'm still worried about my hot water heater. Do I need to drain it before leaving? I'm worried that something will break & flood the house with the water remaining inside the heater.

If you open a faucet (both cold and hot) for a second to relieve the pressure in the lines, there is no way for a pipe to burst. About the only thing that could go wrong after that is if there's an earthquake and the water heater falls over and breaks open. The chances of that are pretty nil.

Also, set your water heater temp to VACATION to save energy. If you actually emptied the tank you'd have to shut off the heat completely so as not to burn a hole in it.

Thanks for the info!

We turned our water off before we went away for a few days, as we have many times before. But tonight, when we came home and turned the main valve back on, there is no water! We've been trying all sorts of things - shutting off the main, opening taps, opening the main...nothing. Any ideas?????

Last February we turned off the water to the house, but not the main to the house. When we returned, we turned on the water, all good. Then at the end of the month we had a 2,215 water bill for 158,000 gallons of water. We were there, fortunately, with this for only TWO WEEKS CAN YOU IMAGINE!!!! and we had no idea, no low water pressure, nothing. They cut the cost in half, and it's taken me a year to pay (our usual bill is $75 every other month).

SO, MY QUESTION IS: What is the proper sequence to turn water off if you are going to be away and you think the temperature outside may fall below freezing.

Coming into this thread late, but with some experience. Unlike the Murphy's Law mentioned earlier, we were actually HOME when a copper pipe made a 1/8" hole and did $10K damage to our kitchen before we noticed it. This past Wednesday, we just finished the kitchen rehab, which damaged about 1/3 of the kitchen. We had to have the cabinets, drywall (including ceiling drywall) pulled out, and dried. Fortunately for us, Home Depot still carried our cabinets. Rather than relying on someone to rebuild the box portion of our cabinets and reuse the fronts, we just ordered new cabinets. Cost US personally about $1K more to do it that way, but the insurance wasn't cooperative in that degree. We were lucky -- the new cabinets matched, our favorite contractor was able to get them in without any damage to the existing granite counter tops, and the cabinets came in within the 4-6 weeks promised.

I just posted in the Plumbing forum about what to shut off during a 32-day trip this summer. We just can't shut off the water to the whole place, because we would lose our yards -- Southern Californians depend on watering (even frugally) because it doesn't rain very much in the summer, if at all. So like others here, I'd want to shut off all the inside fixtures -- sinks, refrigerator water supply, washer/dryer (the easiest, really), toilets. But would love some advice on what order. I guess flushing them out after the water is off, is essential?

Donna

You can turn off the water at the valve next to the water meter. There should be two valves, one at the inlet of the meter and a second at the outlet of the meter. Turning off the inlet valve also protects against a failure at or in the water meter. If you have a gas water heater, its burner should be shut off or turned to "pilot only".

Thanks, Jemdandy! Good to know.

We have only one, the inlet. I turned it off in March when we went away and back on the week later, exactly as instructed by the water department. I also checked with them about bleeding the line from the meter to the house and within the house. Like mentioned earlier they probably froze because there was water trapped in the pipe. By bleeding them first, nothing was left in there to freeze. And that is the solution to be doubly careful.