Leak Detection
Find where hidden water is escaping, whether it is behind a wall, under a floor or along the buried line.
Plumbing guide
Vacation Home Plumbing Checklist for Fountain Hills, AZ
A house that sits empty gives a small leak all the time it needs. A ten-minute routine before you leave, and another when you return, turns a risky absence into a routine one.
By the Fountain Hills Rapid Plumbing team ·
Close the main water valve
The simplest protection is to close the main shutoff at the house. It stops water to every pipe and appliance, and it is the one step that prevents most floods. See how to turn off the main valve if you have not located yours.
If irrigation must run, plan the shutoff around it. A separate valve on the irrigation line allows the house to stay closed.
Take a meter reading
Before you leave, write down the meter reading and take a photo. When you return, compare. If the number changed while the main was closed, water got past the valve or an irrigation line ran.
If you left the main open, the comparison shows whether anything leaked. It is the best single test of a hidden leak.
Water heater settings
Turn the water heater to vacation mode, to a low setting or off. For electric tanks, the breaker works. For gas, set the control to pilot. A heater left at full temperature costs money to maintain and wears the tank.
If the heater stays on, check the area around it for rust or moisture before you go. A small leak there becomes a flood in a month.
Before you leave and when you return
Keep this short list with your travel plans.
| Task | Before leaving | On return |
|---|---|---|
| Main valve | Close it | Open slowly |
| Meter | Record and photograph | Compare readings |
| Water heater | Turn down or off | Turn on after a leak check |
| Drains | Fill traps, add a little oil | Run every tap and flush |
Keep the traps wet
Drains in a vacant house dry out and let sewer gas in. Pour water into every drain, including floor drains and seldom-used showers, then add a spoonful of oil to slow evaporation. The guide on sewer smell explains why.
Run each tap and flush each toilet when you return, to refill the traps and clear stale water.
Appliance hoses and supply lines
Washing machine hoses, ice maker lines and dishwasher connections are under pressure whenever the main is open. Braided steel hoses last longer than rubber. Replace old ones before a long absence.
Turn off the shutoffs behind the washing machine. These are small valves and are quick to close.
Irrigation and outdoor taps
Check the irrigation timer and its battery. A dead timer stops watering, and a stuck valve floods a bed. A rain sensor saves water in monsoon weeks.
Disconnect hoses from bibs, especially in winter. Our guide on outdoor spigots explains why.
Before you lock the door
Run the dishwasher and the washer empty once to flush hoses, then turn off their supplies. Empty the ice maker and set the heater to vacation mode or its lowest safe setting.
Take a last photo of the meter and the water heater area. If you return to a bill you do not recognize, those photos give you a baseline.
Leak sensors and automatic shutoffs
Battery-powered leak sensors cost little and sit on the floor beside the water heater, under sinks and behind the washing machine. When they touch water, they sound an alarm or send a message to your phone. In a house that sits empty, an alert is the difference between a puddle and a flooded floor.
A powered shutoff valve goes further. Installed on the main line, it closes when a sensor trips or when a flow monitor sees water running for too long. A plumber can fit one in an afternoon. Ask how the valve behaves in a power outage and whether it can be closed by hand.
Monsoon season and an empty yard
Summer storms can wash soil off a slope, expose a buried line or flood a window well. If you are away during the monsoon, ask the person checking the house to walk the property after any heavy rain. They should look at the meter box, the cleanouts and the area near the foundation.
Also check that irrigation timers still hold their programs after power blips. A timer that resets to run every zone all day will empty a meter while you are gone.
Leave a one-page plan for your helper
Write down where the main valve and the water heater shutoff are, where the electrical panel sits, and the number of a plumber you trust. Add the meter reading at departure and a short list of what to check on each visit.
If something goes wrong, your helper will not be hunting through the garage for a valve while water spreads. A taped page near the door costs nothing, and people do use it.
Hire a check-in person
A weekly visit by a neighbor, property manager or house sitter catches leaks, odors and appliance faults. Ask them to run each tap briefly, flush the toilets, look at ceilings and read the meter.
Leave written instructions that include the main valve location and your plumber's contact. If they find water, they can act at once.
Winter and summer differences
In summer, heat can age rubber hoses and plastic fittings, and irrigation demands rise. In winter, high-elevation nights can freeze exposed lines. Cover outdoor bibs and insulate exposed pipe.
Adjust your checklist to the season, and review it before each long absence.
When you return
Open the main valve slowly, check the meter and look at the heater and the ceilings. Flush toilets, run taps and look for stains. If the meter moves with everything off, call for leak detection.
Ask a neighbor or a property manager to check the house during long absences. A weekly visit catches problems early.
Common questions
Vacant home plumbing questions
For more than a few days, closing the main is the best protection.
Lowering it or turning it off saves energy. Check the manual for gas units.
Use a separate valve so the house stays closed.
A neighbor, a property manager or a house-sitting service can do a weekly walk-through.
Related services
Burst Pipe Repair
Shut off the water, then fix the cracked or split length of pipe.
Water Heater Repair
Diagnose cold showers, a dripping tank, a rumbling heater, or a pilot or element fault.
More plumbing guides
Locating your main water shutoff
Learn where the main shutoff hides, how to test it and what to do when the handle refuses to turn.
Sewage odor indoors
A rotten-egg or sewage odor has only a handful of origins, and a dry trap is far more common than a broken pipe.
Tracking down a concealed water leak
Three quick tests and a walk around the yard will point you to most concealed leaks before anyone opens a wall.
Coming back to a wet house?
Describe what you found when you opened the door, and the dispatcher lines up a contractor.