Recent homebuilding statistics reveal an increasing trend of locating the laundry room on an upper floor in new houses. Convenience seems to be the driving force. Upstairs is where the dirty laundry is, after all.
What Can Go Wrong?
Washing machines and associated plumbing rank high on the list of household water damage perpetrators. A washer overflowing in an unfinished concrete basement or ground-floor laundry room is a messy, sometimes expensive event. On an upper floor, however, it can be a disaster. Water naturally spreads downward through the structure, infiltrating wall cavities and penetrating ceilings in rooms below.
Certain preventive measures can keep that upper floor laundry room not only convenient but also less likely to become the source of expensive water damage:
- Replace rubber water supply hoses now. Rubber washer hoses can rupture without warning and release hundreds of gallons of water into the laundry room, which then flows through walls and ceilings into living spaces below. Stainless steel washer supply lines last longer and are not prone to rupture suddenly like rubber.
- Place the washer in a drain pan. To guard against water damage from washer overflows or defects such as a leaky pump, a drain pan designed to fit beneath the washer catches water and diverts it safely into a hose connected to a household drain.
- Make shutoff valves accessible. Shutting off the water supply to the washer when it's not being used is a basic flood-prevention strategy. However, straining to reach behind the washer to turn off standard hot and cold water valves every time is a chore. Replace individual rotary valves with a single lever-operated unit that operates both hot and cold valves simultaneously with one easy motion. Units specifically made for this purpose can be installed by a plumber.
- Install leak detection technology. Laundry room leak detectors include a floor sensor to detect washer overflows or other plumbing leakages before the damage becomes extensive. In addition to sounding a loud audio alarm, the unit can send you a text or email to alert you of the problem.
