How to Build a Personalized Water Monitoring Plan and Find Where Water is Leaking

Detecting a leak is challenging. If left unaddressed, water leaking can escalate into major problems, which makes early detection and awareness critically important.

If you’re wondering how to find a water leak, one of the most proactive ways is to create a personalized water damage prevention plan. As we have said before, by failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.

Moen smart water security devices laid out.

Understanding Your Home’s Unique Vulnerabilities

A one-size-fits-all approach, however, doesn’t work when it comes to preventing water damage. A brand-new home will not have the same water leak concerns as one approaching 100 years old. For example, the older home may still have lead or copper pipes instead of new PVC. As lead or copper joints age they can corrode and spring a leak.

Even a new home can have unique vulnerabilities, such as faulty appliance connections due to plumbing or electrical miscalculations. That’s why you need a customized approach to safeguard your property, check for leaks and maintain your peace of mind — before potential disaster strikes.

Your personalized plan should include maintenance and regular assessments of your home and a contingency plan using smart technology to monitor or detect water leaks.

A Helpful Guide to Test Water Lines for Leaks

Planning for Contingencies

Ensure emergency preparedness is part of your plan. Teach everyone living in your home how to spot potential water leaks and what to do when they happen. For example, everyone (including your house sitter or trusted neighbor) should know where the main whole house water shutoff valve is in case you are on vacation or an extended stay elsewhere and they need to shut off the water. Also, explain to them how early detection can minimize damage and repair costs while also ensuring the health and safety of family members, friends and pets.

If the power goes out or you are traveling on an extended vacation, having a contingency plan in place as part of your overall strategy gives you extra peace of mind.

Shutting off the main water line.

Exterior: Preventing Water Intrusion

In addition to considering your smart home’s unique characteristics and implementing a contingency plan, preventing exterior water intrusion should be addressed in your personalized plan.

Some ways to prevent exterior water intrusion are:

Single family home view from exterior.
Regularly checking and maintaining your roof, gutters and downspouts so water doesn’t back up around the foundation of your home, possibly leaking through your basement walls or seeping up through the floor.
Interior dining room with closed windows and French doors in view.
Ensuring that window and door seals are intact to prevent water from entering your home.
Grass field with active sprinkler near home's exterior.
Inspecting your foundation for cracks and ensuring proper landscaping slopes to direct water away from your home.

Interior: Create and Adopt an Inspection Routine

Explore your home to identify all potential leak sources, including plumbing fixtures and water-reliant appliances, even the less common ones like ice makers or water softener systems. Check the pipes running through your basement, shutoff valves under sinks, toilet flush valves, and supply lines for water heaters.

If possible, create a map of your home’s plumbing. Without blueprints, you can visually trace the pipe paths in the basement to the utilities and appliances upstairs. Once you’ve identified the areas vulnerable to potential water leaks, perform a baseline inspection to understand what looks “normal” (i.e., not leaking). This will help you recognize any anomalies during future inspections.

Blueprint style view of potential water leak zones in a home.

Additionally, regularly inspect common leak-prone areas such as under sinks, around toilets, and near appliances like dishwashers and washing machines. As you walk through these areas, check for potential leaks and aim to inspect most areas at least every few months if possible.

Remember to examine plumbing fixtures for signs of wear and tear and monitor your water usage for any unusual increases in your water bill.

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Leveraging Technology for Comprehensive Monitoring

Use technology that protects your home from possible water damage. By using smart systems for comprehensive water monitoring and alerting you are stepping up your game in protecting your home from possible water disasters.

Start to identify strategic locations for water leak detector placement. Besides high-risk locations, such as bathrooms and kitchens, consider locations with other water-using appliances such as the laundry room or an indoor sauna/spa. How does smart leak detection work?

Homeowner observing monitoring alerts via phone app.

How does smart leak detection work?

Detectors are easy to install. Simply place them anywhere you are worried about water leaks. Consider factors like device range, connectivity and sensitivity when selecting. The Smart Leak Detector by Moen is a smart choice as a standalone sensor that can be placed anywhere at home to alert you when and where it detects moisture.

For the ultimate in automatic water leak protection, install Moen’s Smart Water Monitor and Shutoff that provides real-time notifications of leaks and allows you to take immediate action to help prevent them. You can also pair this innovative device with leak detectors placed in areas of concern for added protection.

Flo Smart Water Shutoff and Smart Water Detectors with app screen on phone.

Crafting Your Personalized Plan

Understanding your home’s unique plumbing system and architectural design is the first step in crafting your personalized plan. Second, you should have a contingency plan if you aren’t home. Last, but certainly not least, finding solutions for detecting internal and external water leaks will put you well on your way to building the perfect water leak prevention plan.

Read more about the quiet threat of undetected water leaks.

Learn more about the Moen Flo Smart Water Monitor and Shutoff technology.