amy975•1d ago

Pro tip: I spent last Saturday fixing a leak that turned out to be my own mistake from a year ago.

I capped a pipe in my basement during a remodel and forgot to mark which line it was on the shutoff chart. When a new crack showed up in the drywall, I spent 6 hours chasing a phantom leak before I realized I'd left a valve barely cracked open. Anyone else ever create a problem for yourself that took way too long to figure out?

3 comments

3 Comments

uma_webb281d ago

Made a similar blunder with a water shutoff under the sink, took me two weekends to find it because I'd wedged a box of cleaning supplies right in front of it. Mark your valves with a colored ziptie right as you turn them, saved me from doing the same thing again.

jamiekim5h ago

Zipties beat those sticky labels that fall off after a week.

the_jessica1d ago

Oh yeah, nothing like giving yourself a two-week plumbing puzzle because your cleaning supplies were playing hide and seek with the shutoff valve. That colored ziptie trick sounds genius, bet you felt pretty smug when you finally found it.