Washing Machine Leak Water Damage in Hull

How washing machines leak

• Burst inlet hose. The rubber hose behind the machine perishes and splits. This is the one that floods a kitchen.
• Door seal. A torn or perished seal leaks a little every wash, usually at the front.
• Waste and standpipe. A blocked or loose waste pipe overflows when the machine pumps out.
• Internal faults. Pump or drum seal failures that leave water under the machine.

First things to do

1. Switch the machine off, at the wall if the socket is dry and safe, otherwise at the consumer unit.
2. Turn off the supply at the isolation valve behind the machine, often a small lever or slotted screw on the pipe. If you can't find it, use the stopcock.
3. Photograph the machine, the hose and the wet floor before you move anything.
4. Keep the split hose. Your insurer may ask to see it.

Where the water ends up

Washing machine water is grey water, carrying detergent and dirt, so carpets and underlay it soaks often need replacing. In Hull terraces the machine is usually in the kitchen or back extension. On a concrete floor, water spreads under laminate and vinyl and into the bottom of the walls. On a suspended timber floor it runs straight into the void. If the machine is in a kitchen over a cellar or ground floor flat, check below too.

We lift flooring where it's trapped water, take readings along walls and under units, and dry until the numbers are back to normal.

Stop it happening again

Replace inlet hoses every five years or so, or when they look cracked or bulging. Braided stainless hoses last longer. Turn the supply off if you're going away. It takes a few seconds and can prevent the most expensive kind of leak.

Insurance

A sudden burst hose is normally covered as escape of water. The machine itself usually isn't. See what home insurance covers.

To see what a leak like this usually costs to put right, and what you'd pay after your excess, use our water damage cost estimator.