Solenoid safety valves for laundry room?

[Benze]

Hi,

I'm plumbing my laundry room, and thought it would be prudent to put in some automatic shutoff valves in case of hose or machine leak in the room. I figured a water sensor at the baseboard level as well as a couple of solenoid valves would do the trick just fine.

But I checked my local plumbing supply shop, and solenoid valves cost 120$ ea! Figure I need on for hot and cold lines, and it becomes crazily expensive.

Does anyone put these types of safeties in laundry rooms? Is there a better/cheaper way to do something like that? I was thinking of using the valves for underground sprinkler systems (I figure those have to be cheap to be sold at HD), but those are normally closed, and is more of a pain to work with. Plus, I don't know how reliable and leak proof those are.

Has anybody dealt with this in the past?

Thanks,

Eric

 

[Redwood]

I have installed these...
http://www.watts.com/pages/_products_details.asp?pid=3427

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Ian Gills]

Have you had any problems with them Redwood?

I have one of those and, so far, it works great. But after I did it I heard reports that they can go south in about a year or two when the electronics stop working for one reason or another. And the fittings aren't standard, so you can't just unscrew it and put a manual valve back on (but you could put another one of the same units back on).

As a safety I have put an access panel directly beneath it so I can cut the pipe and pull the unit if I have to.

 

[Redwood]

Have you had any problems with them Redwood?

Some of the early ones yes...
Watts replaced them and we've had a long run of success with them since.

A lot of the condo associations here are now requiring them. It is a lot better than those FloodSafe Washing Machine Hoses they originally were wanting. The false trips on those were a killer!

 

[Ian Gills]

That's good to hear.

Thanks Redwood.

For a cheaper and less refined solution, here's another alternative which saved me on at least two occassions before I got the intelliflow.

The biggest culprit by far is not the burst hoses you mention (although that would be the most expensive damage to fix) but someone (e.g. a mother-in-law; first wife etc.) plugging the utility sink when the washer is running if that is your point of discharge.

 

[Jadnashua]

As a secondary caution, it is always a good idea to shut the water off to the washer when you are done with it. Some of these automatic systems are good if something fails while you are doing a load, but a good backup is always shut it off when done.

 

[Ian Gills]

That's just getting too much like belt and braces jadnashua.

You'll be turning off the main every time you leave the house to go to work next!

Perhaps only to be run over by a bus (although public transport is a very rare sight in the good ol' US of A).

 

[NHmaster3015]

Expensive is relative. A couple years ago, a washer hose split in a 3rd floor luxury condo building flooding the 3rd, 2nd and 1st floors. total cost of the damage was over 200 g's when all was said and done. some of it in damage to the structure and some of it in damage to personal property. So I would say that even at a couple hundred dollars or so, that's pretty cheap.

 

[Benze]

I have installed these...
http://www.watts.com/pages/_products_details.asp?pid=3427

This might sound like a silly question, but it looks like this would have to be connected directly to the water line. Which means no manual shutoff valves? I don't get it; there is no way to manually shut off the water then if this unit fails for whatever reason.

Any idea on the cost of this unit? I would have loved to be able just to find solenoid valves that were inexpensive instead and build it myself....

Thanks,

Eric

 

[Redwood]

The solenoid valve only opens with power to the unit and the washing machine turned on. If you unplug power the valves are normally closed.
The valve is only on when the washer is operating and closes after the cycle is complete.

 

[Ian Gills]

I have a couple of Apollo ball valves well downstream of mine to isolate my kitchen and laundry area. Which can be used to service the unit.

 

[rickford66]

I'm not a plumber, but here's an idea that seems to me to be long overdue... Have the washing machine manufacturers put a STANDARDIZED connector on the back that powers STANDARDIZED external solenoids. No fancy electronics needed. Mount the solenoids on NPT's hard plumbed to copper line and let the washer turn on the solenoid it needs. Should be the cheapest and most reliable solution around, I would think.

 

[Inspektor Ludwig]

Have you thought about a laundry drain pan? Less expensive.

 

[scrappy]

I had the intelliflow unit installed when we moved washer up to 2nd floor. Same time we switched to front loading stackables. have LOTS of problems with the rinse/spin cycle. often get error messages and sometimes have to just turn off and set on separate rinse spin function. Sometimes will work, sometimes takes multiple trials to complete a load of laundry. How do I know if the intelliflow is the issue?
thanks for the help.
Scott

 

[hj]

quote; Have the washing machine manufacturers put a STANDARDIZED connector on the back that powers STANDARDIZED external solenoids. No fancy electronics needed. Mount the solenoids on NPT's hard plumbed to copper line and let the washer turn on the solenoid it needs. Should be the cheapest and most reliable solution around, I would think.

And how would THAT be the "cheapest" solution, since EVERY washing machine would then require two solenoid valves.

 

[DonL]

I had the intelliflow unit installed when we moved washer up to 2nd floor. Same time we switched to front loading stackables. have LOTS of problems with the rinse/spin cycle. often get error messages and sometimes have to just turn off and set on separate rinse spin function. Sometimes will work, sometimes takes multiple trials to complete a load of laundry. How do I know if the intelliflow is the issue?
thanks for the help.
Scott

That sounds like a design flaw in the unit.

What is the model of your stackables ? It may have a Firmware update.

It could also be operator Error, and you are overloading the machine.


Good Luck.

 

[scrappy]

""And the fittings aren't standard, so you can't just unscrew it and put a manual valve back on (but you could put another one of the same units back on).""

is there any fittings to make standard size valves fit??

 

[scrappy]

That sounds like a design flaw in the unit.

What is the model of your stackables ? It may have a Firmware update.

It could also be operator Error, and you are overloading the machine.


Good Luck.

model # is samsung WF209ANW
just got off the online chat with customer service. when given a link to their problem solving page I noticed that they claim FLOODCHEK or FLOODSAFE hoses are NOT ok to use and recommend the steel braided hoses. when I inquired as to why the FLOODCHEK hoses are not safe, the chat reps responses were as follows: Aaron A: Yes, that is correct that the floodchek hoses are not recommended.
Aaron A: Please use standard supply hoses or stainless steel braided hoses as these are recommended and designed as per the product.
Aaron A: Please make sure that flood safe/ check hoses are not installed.

I thought the only difference in the hose was the anti-burst hose used as opposed to the metal type. Are the insides any different and how could these hoses make a difference as far as providing water to the machine????

 

[Cacher_Chick]

The floodsafe hoses use a spring/check valve which often stops the supply of water to the fixture when there is nothing actually wrong. They also have been known to fail and cause flooding of homes due to a manufacturing defect.

 

[DonL]

The floodsafe hoses use a spring/check valve which often stops the supply of water to the fixture when there is nothing actually wrong. They also have been known to fail and cause flooding of homes due to a manufacturing defect.

I would not use them.

Some Insurance companies may give you a break for having BS safety systems like that, that do not work. If it is required by code, I would move.

When it comes to paying up for the insurance company, the blame is put on someone else.

A flood detector works more better, or have a safe way to shut off the water when not at home.


In the day, A wife was at home, She would tell you about anything that was broke.