Some Tips on How to Stop Water Damage

Everyone who owns or rents a home should know what to do to prevent water damage. Even if you rent the property that you’re on, it’s in your best interest to take some responsibility for your living space and do what you can do stop water damage, especially if you plan on renting there for a long time.

If you have a washing machine in your home or apartment, it’s a good idea to make sure that the hose doesn’t have any cracks in it. If the hose ruptures and begins to spew water, it won’t be long before your entire laundry room floor is covered in water and starts leaking into the next room. Hoses that connect to your washer should be replaced as many times and as frequently as you need to, but under normal conditions, every three to five years is sufficient.

A leaky water heater is also a cause of water damage in the home and one of the best ways to determine if you have a leaky one is to look for rust or signs that it has leaked in the past. If a water heater is located on a 2nd or higher floor of the home or apartment building, it needs to be installed inside a pan that has a drain connected to a drain in the floor to make sure the water goes into the plumbing system.

Making sure that water is escaping from your roof the way it should be one of the first things on your mind if you want to prevent water damage to your attic and the rest of your house. If you’re just renting an apartment, then this part is mostly up to your landlord or the property manager. If you’re renting a home, then part of this is probably up to you. Cleaning out the gutters and the general maintenance of the property is up to you unless it’s something serious. Making sure the downspouts that are attached to the corners of the house are free of leaves and other debris will drain water away from the foundation of the house and keep it from sinking into the ground. Keeping water draining away from the house and making sure the cracks around your doors and windows are thoroughly caulked and sealed is another step that you can take to keep water from leaking into your home.

Great Ways To Conserve Water

During seasons that are very dry across the country, some cities are asking residents to do everything that they can to conserve water and to reduce consumption as much as possible. There are a number of things that you can do to help in this endeavor and save yourself a little bit of money in the mean time.

One of the first things that you can do, if you live in one of these areas, is to not water your lawn as often as you probably do. Many people do this with a garden hose, but if you have sprinklers to do it for you, you should make sure your sprinklers do not waste water by shooting it over the driveway or the sidewalk. Changing the head of the sprinkler may help with this, as well.

Set the timer for your sprinklers for shorter times. This means that you should allow your sprinklers to water their areas for 5 minutes, wait around 15 minutes, and then set it to water for another five minutes. This gives the water that was sprayed the first time a chance to seep down into the soil.

Turn the timer on your sprinklers off when you know it is going to rain. You should not turn it back on for at least 2 or 3 days after it rains and if your sprinkler has a “rain delay” feature on it, you can set this.

Try to water your lawn during the early morning, since the water will not evaporate as quickly and this is a naturally good time for plants to be both fed and watered. Watering should be avoided in the middle of the day, since this is the hottest portion. A large quantity of the water will evaporate and be wasted.

Inside the house, you can reduce your water consumption by taking short showers instead of baths. A ten minute shower with a standard showerhead will amount to about half of a full tub of water or less, so try to take showers, especially if you are trying to get somewhere in a hurry. There is no sense in running a full tub of water if you are going to jump in and then right back out.

Try not to do half loads of dishes or clothes. Even though you can change the amount of water that you use in the clothes washer, you still use about the same amount of electricity to run the cycle, so you are still better off just doing a full load.