Risk of bursting washing machine water hose?

[OneMoreFarang]

In my newly renovated condominium, I have a water outlet behind the washing machine. This is in the kitchen between cabinets.

I put it there because I thought that would be the logical position. Connect the machine and fine.

But now I have second thoughts, because if I do that then I will have to have the water valve (behind the washing machine) open all the time.

I wonder how high the risk is, that one day, maybe long time in the future, the water hose might burst and then there will be flooding - without a drain anywhere nearby.

Did anybody of you have a big water leak with such a hose? If there is only a small leak, then I guess I will notice it, maybe the floor is a little wet, and then I can fix it.

My concern is the probability of suddenly a major leak.

 

I can't move the washing machine in and out after each use to close the valve.

 

What I could possibly do, is to extend the water inlet hose by a meter or so and connect that to a water outlet under the kitchen sink. That is a valve which I can easily access, and I could close it after using the washing machine and/or if I am away for some time.

 

How about you? Is your washing machine water hose always under pressure? Did you ever have any problems with that?

 

 

[worrab]

Never had a hose burst so I cannot see what you are worrying about. Why would the hose burst anyway? They are sturdy and therefore no problem.

[Trippy]

Every washing machine everywhere has a valve that's always open. Don't think too much.

[OneMoreFarang]

3 minutes ago, worrab said:

Never had a hose burst so I cannot see what you are worrying about. Why would the hose burst anyway? They are sturdy and therefore no problem.

 

I think it is obvious what I am worrying about: A flooded kitchen/condominium. That is obviously something that I don't want.

I am pretty sure any water pipes in the walls will not suddenly burst, worst case they will start to leak one day.

If washing machine hoses never burst, then fine, then I don't have to worry.

But I am sure some people will close the valve to the machine after every use. And maybe some people do that because they had a bad experience. This is why I ask. And I think worrying a little about a problem which could possibly happen is not really a problem.

But maybe I don't have to worry because that just never happens...

[NanLaew]

The only hoses that have experienced blowing out are the braided ones from the half-inch water risers under the kitchen and bathroom sinks to the taps. This was in a rental house that was maybe 7 or 8 years old. A couple blew out within a few weeks of each other, so I replaced the lot, including the feeds to the toilet cisterns. The Thai landlord agreed they were probably a cheap batch used by the builder during construction and reimbursed me.

 

Never seen any appliance feed hoses blow out though.

[sirineou]

19 minutes ago, worrab said:

Never had a hose burst so I cannot see what you are worrying about. Why would the hose burst anyway? They are sturdy and therefore no problem.

Same here

I wad my washing machines connected full time , all my life and never had a hose burst/

IMO it is a low probability event. 

I know in the US I had a spill tray  under my washer and Under my water heater,  They must have them here, or you can adapt something , or have one made out of tin. 

[Crossy]

14 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

The only hoses that have experienced blowing out are the braided ones from the half-inch water risers under the kitchen and bathroom sinks to the taps. This was in a rental house that was maybe 7 or 8 years old. A couple blew out within a few weeks of each other, so I replaced the lot, including the feeds to the toilet cisterns. The Thai landlord agreed they were probably a cheap batch used by the builder during construction and reimbursed me.

 

Never seen any appliance feed hoses blow out though.

 

Ditto.

 

We've popped quite a few of the braided ones but over 20 odd years here never had a machine hose spring a leak.

 

@OneMoreFarang could you possibly fashion an extender to allow operation of the tap? Or move the tap to an accessible location?

 

[daveAustin]

Never happened to me or anyone I know. They’re always on for this very reason, most being permanently installed. Those hoses are also well engineered, at least on decent brands.
Get into the habit of knocking off water when away for more than a day. 

[lopburi3]

Agree risk is slight but to be sure you could easily wire up an electric valve (as most dish washers use) to only allow water flow when washer electric is on.  Nothing to remember - nothing to forget.

https://www.lazada.co.th/tag/electric-water-valve/?spm=a2o4m.home-th.search.1.11257f6dmAoLG5&q=electric water valve&_keyori=ss&clickTrackInfo=textId--3890088500922056844__abId--328631__Score--0.25124045080782903__pvid--e435429c-a96f-487f-ba73-8ead63276b8f__matchType--1__matchList--1-2-3__srcQuery--electric water valve__spellQuery--electric water valve__ctrScore--0.5894976258277893__cvrScore--0.0020882764365524054&from=suggest_normal&sugg=electric water valve_0_1&catalog_redirect_tag=true

[ricklev]

For peace of mind:  http://tinyurl.com/4pzd78vk or something like that.  They also make more expensive ones that will send you a message, I think.  http://tinyurl.com/4pzd78vk

[carlyai]

If you can't move the tap or install a drain, then turn the water off at the meter when you go out.

[lopburi3]

2 minutes ago, ricklev said:

For peace of mind:  http://tinyurl.com/4pzd78vk or something like that.  They also make more expensive ones that will send you a message, I think.  http://tinyurl.com/4pzd78vk

The key is prevention - not an alarm telling you that on return you will find a flood.

[SammyJ]

Back in the US, i purchased "non-burst" hoses that addressed such a fear--got them at Home Depot, and they were a little more expensive than the regular houses, but, of course, well worth it.  Not sure if they sell them here at Home Pro, Global House, Mega Home, etc--or on Lazada, but you could probably order them on Amazon.

Whatever the cost, it would be well worth it as a water disaster is a mess you really want to avoid at all costs!

[ricklev]

4 minutes ago, lopburi3 said:

The key is prevention - not an alarm telling you that on return you will find a flood.

Hmmm.  OK.  Seems useful to me, but I am not going to war about it.  

[digbeth]

same issue with bum gun hoses, often the cause of many floodings in condo buildings when owners left to go on holiday

 

I suppose you could adapt the metal sleeved or braided water hose usually use to connect faucets or shower heads, but those can leek too

[Artisi]

Besides not worrying too much about bursting a hose, I would if you are really concerned fit a pressure relief valve on the outlet, this will reduce the pressure in the hose - what kills hoses is constant high pressure. 

I did this on our bumgun, never any problem since. 

[lopburi3]

2 minutes ago, ricklev said:

Hmmm.  OK.  Seems useful to me, but I am not going to war about it.  

For other uses, leaks, it would be very useful.  But for burst pipe with no drains would likely be to late for action.

 

1 minute ago, digbeth said:

same issue with bum gun hoses, often the cause of many floodings in condo buildings when owners left to go on holiday

 

I suppose you could adapt the metal sleeved or braided water hose usually use to connect faucets or shower heads, but those can leek too

Good quality shower type hose is easily available in various lengths and works well.  Am sure that is the reason most bathrooms have floor drains and water flow is restricted on wall tap.

https://www.lazada.co.th/tag/bidet-hose/?q=bidet hose&catalog_redirect_tag=true

[Wydahoan]

i Have seen it happen to my neighbor in the USA, flooded her house first floor very quickly, and she was home. She didn’t know about the shut off valve. She called me first, and not her husband, because she knew I fixed things. I have been a handyman for almost 50 years, I wouldn’t install a new washer without the top of the line washer hoses. The hoses sometimes have movement depending on the pressure and your washer, so there is actually wear and tear happening every time you do a load. If you know where an isolation valve is inside your condo, and it’s easy to get at, it wouldn’t hurt to turn that off when leaving for awhile. And if you google washer hose and insurance you might see some other stories. Sometimes it’s good to worry! 

[UWEB]

1 hour ago, OneMoreFarang said:

 

I think it is obvious what I am worrying about: A flooded kitchen/condominium. That is obviously something that I don't want.

I am pretty sure any water pipes in the walls will not suddenly burst, worst case they will start to leak one day.

If washing machine hoses never burst, then fine, then I don't have to worry.

But I am sure some people will close the valve to the machine after every use. And maybe some people do that because they had a bad experience. This is why I ask. And I think worrying a little about a problem which could possibly happen is not really a problem.

But maybe I don't have to worry because that just never happens...

One time I had a burst Hose for Washing Machine, since I always close the Tab. In my new House the Water Connection with a nice Water Tab is above the Washing Machine, so easy to close.

[Tropicalevo]

1 hour ago, worrab said:

Never had a hose burst so I cannot see what you are worrying about. Why would the hose burst anyway? They are sturdy and therefore no problem.

Wrong.

I lived in Sydney for a few years and rented  great house with the living accommodation upstairs, bedrooms downstairs - for the views of the opera house.

Washing machine in the kitchen upstairs.

Mouse ate through the hose. The whole friggin house was flooded. Water flowing like a river out of the front door. (I was at work all day!)

[gargamon]

Had this happen in one of my revenue properties. The hose failed in an upper unit in the middle of the night. Flooded the lower. Lower tenant moved out, had to renovate down. Months off the market.

 

 

[RayWright]

As @ricklev has pointed out, you can get an alarm, however down to cost as to it's alerting properties.

Found iSocket last year, a Finnish company, with international sales and support. Uses a multi carrier data Sim in the wall socket device (with built in battery backup)  as opposed to WiFi, so more reliable.

Basic module provides power loss alerting, but additional modules can be connected and cover temperature, fire / smoke, intruder and water leak.

See https://isocket.eu

Bought mine to cover power loss ( to UPS) and Smoke/Heat as I don't trust the fire alarm in the Condo, as never seen it maintained.

If you've got the budget, and love IT Techy toys, then look at USA company https://AvTech.Com , better still link it with Paessler PRTG (German) for an all round environmental monitoring and alerting system.

 

[quake]

Op, if your that worried, just change the hose every 4 years, 

very cheap to do.

But in 25 years never had one burst.

[OneMoreFarang]

Thanks for all your comments.

 

I will have a second look how easy it is for me to use a valve which is maybe 2m away.

 

And I am pretty sure I will buy a water leakage sensor or two.

I have home automation and I will buy water leakage sensors which I can integrate. Then I can configure this so it will send an alarm to me if there is any leakage.

If there is a leakage and I am at home, then I know where the water valves are. And worst case, if nobody is at home, then I can call the building management and they can close the main valve to my unit.

Obviously, it's better to prevent any possible leak but such sensors might be a good idea and they are cheap compared to possible damage. 

 

[lopburi3]

1 minute ago, quake said:

Op, if your that worried, just change the hose every 4 years, 

very cheap to do.

But in 25 years never had one burst.

Well I have had one split in much less than 25 years so it can and does happen.  Which is why almost all Thai will close valve after use - as they have been instructed to do.  In our case washer is outside so leak quickly found and corrected without damage (and why valve not closed).  In a condo it could be a very serious issue.

[jaideedave]

2 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

 

I think it is obvious what I am worrying about: A flooded kitchen/condominium. That is obviously something that I don't want.

I am pretty sure any water pipes in the walls will not suddenly burst, worst case they will start to leak one day.

If washing machine hoses never burst, then fine, then I don't have to worry.

But I am sure some people will close the valve to the machine after every use. And maybe some people do that because they had a bad experience. This is why I ask. And I think worrying a little about a problem which could possibly happen is not really a problem.

But maybe I don't have to worry because that just never happens...

Things break and deteriorate over time. A burst/leaking hose while you aren't home can cause a ton of damage especially in a condo situ.In my house there is a valve/tap that is opened and closed upon each and every use.Its never left in the open position when not in use. It's in my standing orders for all to see.555

For peace of mind I'd fix it. It probably won't cost a lot.

[jaideedave]

1 hour ago, Wydahoan said:

i Have seen it happen to my neighbor in the USA, flooded her house first floor very quickly, and she was home. She didn’t know about the shut off valve. She called me first, and not her husband, because she knew I fixed things. I have been a handyman for almost 50 years, I wouldn’t install a new washer without the top of the line washer hoses. The hoses sometimes have movement depending on the pressure and your washer, so there is actually wear and tear happening every time you do a load. If you know where an isolation valve is inside your condo, and it’s easy to get at, it wouldn’t hurt to turn that off when leaving for awhile. And if you google washer hose and insurance you might see some other stories. Sometimes it’s good to worry! 

I completely forgot about the special hoses for washing machines.I don't they excist here.They are very robust but there should always be a shut off valve nearby to open/close for convenience.

[quake]

12 minutes ago, lopburi3 said:

Well I have had one split in much less than 25 years so it can and does happen.  Which is why almost all Thai will close valve after use - as they have been instructed to do.  In our case washer is outside so leak quickly found and corrected without damage (and why valve not closed).  In a condo it could be a very serious issue.

 

What ever mate.

Do you turn off the water to your taps in the house after making a cup of tea. 

they have flexible pipes as well. or do want to argue about quality of pipes. now.

21 years in a condo, never an issue.

just keep up with the maintenance. 

Nothing wrong with putting an isolation value in, up to him. 

 

 

 

 

[NotEinstein]

The hoses supplied with washing machines are thick and very robust, the potential weakest point being the metal clamp securing the ends.  In reality the actual washing machine connection internally is probably the weakest point, it usually being a push-fit rubber grommet on the solenoid valve.

The more flexible metal encased toilet squirter pipes are another matter, with a very thin pipe - the thick white versions are much stronger if less flexible.

[quake]

Op.

Have a look round the internet net ( Lazada)

Maybe there is some kind of electronic water shut of value you could get fitted to the outlet then wired to a switch in the kitchen.

As this is an after thought and space is restricted.