Water-leak alarms
research by Richard E. Gordon
richard@gordonrichard.com
last updated
February 23, 2010
Water alarms? Leaking water can cause big damage in a condo
building. Imagine if a fifth floor apartment owner forgets about water filling
up his bathtub while he's wrapped up in answering his emails. Water flows across
the bathroom floor and leaks into the condo below. The fourth floor owner is
asleep. By the time she wakes up several hours later, her new living room rug
is soaked.
- Are there water-sensitive alarms that might have awakened the dozing owner?
- And might any such alarms be loud enough to alert others in neighboring
condos?
- QVC offers
an alarm, two for the price of only $19.78 ($5.47 shipping and handling), but
do note the negative review at the bottom of the QVC page. Unfortunatley only
one review
is given.
The model number is WA-100, manufactured by Excalibur. Another
WA-100 alarm from Supco that looks different from the Excalibur model.
Here there is more information on where to place the alarm, e.g., undersinks,
and
claims the alarm will keep ringing for up to three days (and nights, too?).
Nothing here --at QVC or Supco -- about the volume of the alarm. So we don't
know if either alarm could be heard in adjacent condos.
- Amazon offers
many, many alarms. I've dealth with Amazon over several years now and have
always been pleased with the way Amazon (1) delivers its advertised
products and (2) handles the billing. Note that alarm information has links
to customer reviews. Reviews for the first alarm shown, the Zircon
model, indicates
the water detection alarm is as loud as a smoke-detector alarm. I wonder
if most room, battery operated smoke detectors can be heard in neighboring
apartments.
- Alliance
Control alarm, much more expensive than most, automatically dials
up to three phone numbers to alert others that a detected leak exists
in your condo. Perhaps individual condo owners would be interested
in purchasing
this
kind of alarm instead of having the purchase of less expensive alarms
come out of the general maintenance fund. Several customer
reviews on this product.
- Water heater cut-off valves. Perhaps the biggest potential damage of water
leaks can come from water heaters. This possibility might be a serious concern
in our building where many of the water heaters may be far beyond the recommended
years of use before requiring replacement. Here are some links to water-heater
cut off valves. We would have to factor in the installation costs by a licensed
plumber.