Washing machine hookup

[Dan Bundy]

Anyone familiar with the Watts Intelliflow washing machine valves (or similar)? It's a valve that shuts off the water to the washer when it's not running so the hoses are not under constant pressure. I have a concern that the 'gates" may be quick-opening and the sudden surge in pressure could cause a hose to pop, which could be nearly as bad as a pop in a constantly pressurized hose.

I guess the question I have is, are they slow opening or quick opening and am I overly worried. They cost about $150, which is not bad insurance if they work as they should.

As background, I saw Rich use one on This Old House. I found the product name there, and Googled it, which led to a web site. They actually replied to the question I posted on their "contact us" link, but it didn't fully answer my question and there has been no response to my follow-up.

Anybody have any experience/knowledge about these? Thanks.

[Chris Gregory]

Dan,

I'm not familiar with the model you are talking about but I believe the way they actually work is they are constantly open and will shut in the event of a hose failure ie uncontrolled flow.

[Eddie Watkins]

I just bought some hoses that are supposed to shut off the water automatically in case the hose breaks. It appeared to me that there was a shut off valve next to the faucet and a valve at the other end of the hose to restrict water flow and create back pressure. If the hose breaks allowing free flow of the water the valve by the faucet will shut when it senses a lack of back pressure. The hoses are wire wrapped but I'm not sure if that adds any value. They only cost around $15-20 each at one of the box stores.

[Lee DeRaud]

Maybe it's different in harsher climates or more strenuous usage, but just how big a problem is this? I recall talking to friends and coworkers the last this subject came up: no one had ever had a hose break, no one knew anybody who had a hose break, no one knew anybody who knew anybody who had a hose break...you get the idea.

Mind you, my washer is in the garage, so a break wouldn't be enormously destructive in any case. But on the other hand, I also never hear anyone worrying about the water line to the dishwasher or the line to the icemaker or the flex connections under the bathroom sinks, all of which are under the same pressure.

[Lee DeRaud]

I'm not familiar with the model you are talking about but I believe the way they actually work is they are constantly open and will shut in the event of a hose failure ie uncontrolled flow.The ones Trethewy used on ATOH had a current sensor that detected the washer being turned on and opened the valves.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

It is indeed a problem. I have a friend who spent his free time during winter months finishing his basement...family room, utility room, etc. Shortly after finishing it....he was lying on the couch on Sunday watching the football game....heard rushing water.....hose had broken on wash machine.

[Eddie Watkins]

I have had one break while we were out. It ran for over an hour and ruined 3 rooms of carpet and an Oak floor in 2 rooms and the entry. Cost over $7,000 to replace all the carpet and the floor. Insurance paid most of it but it still cost me my deductible and a lot of trouble and work. Since then I change them out every couple of years just to be sure it doesn't happen again. Replacing the standard hoses is a lot cheaper than fixing the mess after it happens. A few months ago I found the new hoses with the valve on them and so I put them in.

[Vaughn McMillan]

Maybe it's different in harsher climates or more strenuous usage, but just how big a problem is this? I recall talking to friends and coworkers the last this subject came up: no one had ever had a hose break, no one knew anybody who had a hose break, no one knew anybody who knew anybody who had a hose break...you get the idea.

Mind you, my washer is in the garage, so a break wouldn't be enormously destructive in any case. But on the other hand, I also never hear anyone worrying about the water line to the dishwasher or the line to the icemaker or the flex connections under the bathroom sinks, all of which are under the same pressure. They do break, but not often. However, a broken line can cause a lot of trouble. A couple years ago I had a close friend who had a flexible cold water supply line break under her bathroom sink while she was away at work. She came home to 3" of water throughout her slab-on-grade house. (She learned the hard way that her slab is indeed level.) The insurance company had all her stuff moved into storage, and she lived in a hotel for three months until her house was fixed. It took at least two weeks to dry the bottoms of the walls, then another long spell to patch the drying holes, repaint all the walls, replace all the flooring and baseboard in the house, and move her stuff back in. She paid the difference to upgrade her cheesy carpet to Pergo laminate flooring throughout, but it was a very disruptive affair for her.

- Vaughn