Non-weather water damage and freezing loss claims are among the most common property insurance claims1. I’m all too familiar with the data–and many homeowners have a horror story (or two) about sloshing through a waterlogged basement.
You can imagine the stress, inconvenience, and cost of water damage due to appliance leaks and burst or broken pipes. No one wants to live without their kitchen or bathroom for weeks or months while coordinating with contractors to repair and rebuild.
What if homeowners could potentially avoid these risks each year?
Thanks to recent advancements in “smart” leak detection technology and automated water shutoff devices, homeowners can take proactive steps to reduce home water loss risk.
How Smart Water Devices Reduce the Risk of Water Damage
In most cases, water enters the home through a single pipe and travels through the plumbing system to reach sinks, showers, refrigerators, and washers.
Water shutoff and leak detection devices, like PHYN and LeakBot, are installed at the plumbing system’s entry point to monitor water flow and vibrations. They “learn” about your water usage and “understand” what particular pressures, volumes, and patterns mean at specific times. For example:
Your family may use 30 gallons of water for showers, 2 for washing dishes, and 1 for filling water bottles every morning. Your detection device* tracks this data and learns your family’s typical water usage habits. If it detects an anomaly, such as a faucet left on by mistake, it will send an alert to your phone. From there, you can turn off the water and contact a plumber if necessary. You can also set leak detection devices like PHYN to shut off your water automatically if it detects a leak.
These devices are extremely sensitive and can detect small leaks in concealed spaces and alert you that a faucet, pipe, or fixture may need attention before significant water damage occurs.