Tips for When you Travel

When you are going on vacation, there are a few things you should know about your appliances before you leave. There are many horror stories of people coming home to a flooded house after a vacation. There are a couple simple steps that can be taken to keep your household appliances from causing such a disaster.

•Turn off water to the Washer
If the water is left on there is constantly pressure on the washer hoses, rubber washer hoses should be replaced every 5 years. Stainless braided hoses should be replaced every 10 years. The hoses can deteriorate and burst, with the water left on it would just be a constant stream into your laundry room. Hoses should be checked often, and if there are any signs of damage or deterioration they should be replaced.

•Turn off water to the Dishwasher
not as likely but just as damaging as washer hoses, the line to your dishwasher could break or leak, and go unnoticed while you are traveling.

•Turn off at least icemaker in your fridge
Icemakers can break mechanically and get stuck in the fill part of their cycle which would cause water to continuously run in your freezer, leading to a flood, and a solid block of ice.

The line going to the fridge could also leak, causing a flood so if you can turn the water off without too much trouble turn both the icemaker and water off. The problem with this is the shut off is usually behind the fridge.

Another tip for everyday use is to not leave any appliances running and leave your home. Starting a load of laundry before heading to work may seem productive, but with front load, and top load washers we have seen the water level sensor malfunction and just continuously fill the washer until it floods. Dishwashers and ice makers can both do the same. We have also seen dryers catch fire from built up lint and if you aren’t home to catch any of these it could lead to major damage.