Three Plumbing Tips To Protect Your Vacation Home
Plumbing can be a blessing and a curse. It's certainly nice to have flushing toilets and hot showers, but when the toilet overflows or your hot water tank leaks, you're sure to face some frustration. Plumbing problems are even more worrisome in vacation homes, since you're not there constantly to keep an eye on things and call the plumber at the first sign of malfunction. Thankfully, these residential plumbing tips for vacation homes will help you prevent a calamity.
Tip #1: Choose a tankless hot water heater.
Standard, tank-style water heaters are a breeding ground for leaks. They can leak near the valves, or as they age, they can develop rust spots that eventually lead to leaks. This is not a huge deal if you're home all the time and catch a leak before it leads to major flooding. But in a vacation home, a leaky water tank can cause thousands of dollars of water damage before you return.
A tankless hot water heater, which is a box that mounts on the wall and warms water on demand, is a much safer option in a vacation home. It does not store any water, so there's really no risk of leaks.
Tip #2: Shut off the water.
Locate the water main on your vacation home, and make sure the valve turns easily. If it does not, apply some lubricant and loosen it up. Then, get into the habit of turning the water off when you'll be leaving the home vacant for more than a few days. After you turn the water main off, open a faucet to drain the pipes. This will decrease the chances of your home flooding due to a burst pipe. In the winter, it's also a good way to keep your pipes from freezing.
Tip #3: Close your toilet lids.
When a home sits vacant for a while, you have no way of knowing whether mice or other pests have moved in while you're away. Often, these pests will fall into toilets while seeking water. They may wiggle down the pipes in an effort to escape before dying and causing a clog. Close your toilet lids before you leave, and you won't have to worry them. Set a few mouse traps, too -- just in case.
You don't want to spend your time at your vacation home making repairs and calling plumbers. Follow the tips above, and you'll have a much lower risk of a plumbing-related calamity.
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