The laundry hoses connecting to your washing machine aren’t the first thing you think about every day. You just do the wash, and the water gets in the tub without a thought or a care. They just work, right?
But, that’s not always the case.
Recently, we helped a customer who was complaining that water was dripping inexplicably from their ceiling in the basement in the laundry room. They couldn’t explain it… there was a wet patch in the ceiling with water dripping down delaminating the drywall. Plus, they were experiencing water all over the floor. This was a constant problem, and a real nightmare.
The strange thing is that the floor above had no plumbing that could have leaked there.
When we were called to the scene, our plumber went to work examining the situation. Truly, the floor above was dry as a bone, and there was no sign of leakage from any pipe coming from above.
But, quickly we discovered the problem when we inspected the washing machine.
We noticed that a stream of water was spouting out from behind the washer… splashing at that exact wet spot on the ceiling and flooding the floor. Upon further examination, we found the culprit; one of the rubber supply hoses was worn out and had sprung a leak.
Replace your laundry supply lines
The fill hoses for your washing machine are under a lot of pressure all the time. That can eventually wear out the integrity of the hose, especially if you have rubber hoses. Plus, rubber is prone to dry rot which will weaken the integrity of the walls of the hose. Most people would never think of using a standard outside garden hose for their laundry connectors… but that’s just what you have when rubber hoses are used.
You can expect a washing machine to last for ten, fifteen, or twenty years, but don’t expect your hoses to last that long. Rubber hoses could last as little as 1-2 years under all of that pressure all the time. To extend the time before you need to replace your laundry supply hoses, you can use stainless steel washing machine hoses with braided stainless steel over a PCV plastic core which are quite flexible but designed to withstand a lot of pressure (up to 125 psi) and continue to maintain their strength and integrity. Braided stainless steel washing machine connectors with a PVC coating are also a great choice. They can have a burst strength of up to 1600 psi with a large inner diameter.
Whatever choice you make, we highly recommend that you consider changing your laundry hoses every five years.
The expert plumbers at DRC Plumbing and Sewer can quickly change those hoses for you and leave you with the peace of mind knowing that the job was done right by a professional. There’s no need to crawl behind your washer or move that heavy piece of equipment to get to your hoses. We’ll use high quality high-pressure supply line hoses to ensure that you are leak free.
If you do have a leak or you find water spots in places you can’t explain, don’t hesitate to give us a call. Talk to one of our professional plumbers today!
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