Beware! There’s a hidden danger lurking in your cabinets

If I was to ask you how is your water or sewer supply connected to your basin or sink tap in the cabinet, would you know?

Most people wouldn’t be concerned with this question, but if I was to tell you that just by checking this it could save you a large water bill, clean up and repair costs and heart ache of making a water damages claim, would you do it.

You see there is a hidden danger lurking underneath our sinks and basins. These are flexible braided hoses. They connect from the water pipes sticking out of the wall to the basin mixers or sink mixers going through your bench top, supplying cold and hot water to our taps. Studies show that these hoses account for 1 in 5 water damages claims throughout Australia.

These hoses (commonly called flexi hoses) have become a main stay in any plumbing fit out these days and have been in use for the past 15 years. They are very popular because they can be twisted and bent easily (to an extent) to hook on to threaded connections. They consist of rubber piping which is layered in a protective stainless steel wiring or sheath.

However typically the lifespan of these braided hoses is no more than 10 years, depending on how they are installed. What!!! You may ask. This is why these hoses need to be checked.

Now because of the out of sight out of mind thinking these hoses can be in desperate need of replacement and we would never know. Stuff just gets piled in front of them and they’re forgotten about.

Just imagine going away for the weekend or on holidays for a few weeks and you have a flexi hose burst while your away. What a mess! This does happen on a regular basis, just don’t let it be you.

Whenever we install flexi hoses we install a shutoff valve before it for easy replacement and in the case of emergencies where water needs to be shut off quickly to the burst hose. It’s just for added security, but someone needs to be there to shut the valve off of course.

Now I’m going to give you a few signs to check for, now that your aware of the threat that comes with flexi hoses.

Rusting or corrosion on the stainless steel protective layer.

Fraying of the stainless steel wiring.

Any tight bends, resulting in kinking of the hose.

Bubbled or expanded sections of the hose that is different from the rest of the hose.

If any of the things mentioned above are present on your hoses it is advised to replace them straight away. The hoses themselves aren’t of great expense compared to the mess they could cause if a burst occurs.

The next time you venture away for the weekend or an extended holiday it is wise to check under your sinks and basins even toilets and make sure your flexi hoses look in a healthy state.

For added comfort and peace of mind shutting your water supply off to the house at the meter will eliminate all possible water leak threats. Then you can just sit back and enjoy your holiday.