A week away from home is supposed to be relaxing. What it is not supposed to involve is a phone call from a neighbor telling you there is water coming out from under the front door, or walking into your house after a trip to find that a supply line has been leaking into the cabinet under the bathroom sink for six days. Plumbing leaks and failures do not wait for a convenient time, and a home with no one in it for a week or longer gives any developing problem a significant head start on the damage it can cause.
The good news is that most plumbing problems that strike vacant homes are preventable with a pre-vacation checklist that takes under an hour to work through. The steps are not complicated, they do not require professional tools, and most of them take only a few minutes each. This guide covers every major plumbing precaution worth taking before a trip, why each one matters, and the signs that something needs to be addressed by a plumber before you leave rather than crossed off a list and hoped for the best.
The five most important plumbing precautions before leaving on a trip are shutting off the main water supply, inspecting for any existing leaks, turning off appliance supply lines, setting the water heater to vacation mode, and cleaning drains and the disposal so odors and dry traps do not develop while the home sits unused. Each step takes only minutes, and collectively they address the most common sources of plumbing damage that occur in unoccupied homes.
Pre-Vacation Plumbing Precaution Checklist
The table below covers every major plumbing task worth completing before a trip, roughly how long each one takes, and why it matters.
Pre-Vacation Plumbing Preparation Checklist
| Task | Time Needed | DIY or Pro? | Why It Matters |
| Shut off main water supply | 2 minutes | DIY | Stops damage from any leak that develops while away |
| Inspect for existing leaks | 15 minutes | DIY + Pro | Small leaks worsen when unattended for days or weeks |
| Turn off appliance supply lines | 5 minutes | DIY | Washing machine and dishwasher hoses are common failure points |
| Set water heater to vacation mode | 2 minutes | DIY | Saves energy; prevents heating empty tank water |
| Flush and clean disposal and drains | 10 minutes | DIY | Prevents odors and dry traps that allow sewer gas in |
| Test sump pump | 5 minutes | DIY | Confirms it will function during storms while you are away |
| Arrange a neighbor check-in | 10 minutes | DIY | Catches any developing issue before it becomes serious damage |
The total time investment for the entire checklist is under an hour for most homes, and that hour addresses every major category of plumbing risk that affects vacant properties. The most common plumbing disasters that happen while homeowners are away- burst supply lines, leaking appliance hoses, and slow leaks that go undetected for days- are all addressed by items in this list.
Step 1: Shut Off the Main Water Supply
Turning off the main water supply before leaving for any trip longer than a couple of days is the single most effective plumbing precaution available. When the main water supply is off, any leak that develops in the plumbing system, whether from a supply line, a fitting, a faucet, or an appliance connection, is limited to the water already in the pipes rather than having access to a continuous pressurized supply. A pipe that bursts with the main water on can release hundreds of gallons before anyone discovers it. The same failure with the main water off releases only what was already in the line.
The main water shut-off valve in a Michigan home is almost always located in the basement or utility room near where the water supply line enters the foundation, typically toward the front of the house. A gate valve has a round wheel handle that requires multiple turns to close fully. A ball valve has a lever handle that closes with a quarter turn perpendicular to the pipe. After closing the valve, turning on a faucet and waiting for flow to stop confirms it is fully closed. Homes with irrigation systems that need to continue running while the house is empty can use localized indoor shut-offs to isolate the indoor plumbing while leaving the irrigation supply active.
Step 2: Inspect for Existing Leaks
A leak that is minor and manageable when someone is home to notice it can cause significant damage when it runs undetected for the duration of a week-long absence. Before leaving, spend 15 minutes checking every location where plumbing problems commonly originate. Under every sink, look for moisture on the cabinet floor, staining on the cabinet walls, corrosion at the supply line connections, or a drain fitting that is damp around the threads. These are all signs of a slow leak that will worsen with time.
Check the area around the base of every toilet for moisture or soft flooring, which indicates a failing wax ring. Look at the supply line connections at the back of each toilet for any dripping at the compression fittings. Inspect the area around the water heater for any pooling, rust staining, or moisture on the surrounding floor. According to the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety, plumbing leaks and failures are among the most common causes of water damage claims in residential properties, and many of those claims involve damage that developed or worsened during periods when the home was unoccupied. Any active leak found during the pre-vacation inspection should be repaired by a licensed plumber before leaving, not after returning.
Step 3: Turn Off Appliance Supply Lines
Washing machine hoses are one of the most common sources of significant water damage in residential homes because they are under constant supply pressure, rarely inspected, and can fail without any warning. A rubber washing machine hose that has been in service for more than five years is statistically likely to fail at some point, and a failure with no one home produces hours or days of uninterrupted water flow into the laundry area. Turning off the hot and cold supply valves behind the washing machine before a trip eliminates this risk entirely. The valves are typically oval handles on the supply lines where they connect to the wall, and closing them requires only a clockwise turn.
The dishwasher supply line and the refrigerator water line, if the refrigerator has an ice maker or water dispenser, follow the same principle. Each has a shut-off valve that can be closed before leaving without any impact on the appliance itself. Leaving appliance doors slightly ajar while away prevents mold and musty odors from developing in the sealed, humid interior of a dishwasher or washing machine drum over an extended absence.
Step 4: Manage the Water Heater
Heating a full tank of water to a maintained temperature around the clock while no one is home to use it wastes energy continuously throughout the entire absence. Most modern tank water heaters have a vacation or pilot mode setting that maintains the pilot light on gas units or keeps minimal power to the heating elements on electric units without maintaining full temperature. Setting the water heater to this mode before leaving saves energy over the course of a week or more without any negative impact on the unit itself.
For trips longer than two weeks, draining the water heater is worth considering as a precaution. A drained tank cannot leak, eliminates the standby energy use entirely, and allows any sediment that has accumulated at the bottom to be flushed during the drain and refill process when you return. This is a plumbing task that most homeowners can complete themselves with the instructions in the owner’s manual, but a licensed plumber can handle it as part of a pre-departure plumbing service call if preferred.
Step 5: Clean Drains and the Disposal
Drain traps, the U-shaped pipe sections under every fixture, hold a small amount of water that creates a seal preventing sewer gases from entering the home through the drain opening. In a home that sits unused for an extended period, that water evaporates, and the seal is lost. Sewer gas entering the home through dry traps produces a persistent unpleasant odor and, in sufficient concentrations, can be a health and safety concern. Running water through every drain, including bathroom sinks, showers, and floor drains, before leaving ensures all traps are full and sealed for the duration of the trip.
The garbage disposal accumulates food residue on the grinding surfaces and the underside of the splash guard that can produce strong odors within days of sitting in a warm, closed house. Running the disposal with cold water for 30 to 60 seconds to flush any remaining food particles, then grinding citrus peels to coat the internal surfaces with natural deodorizing oils, takes under five minutes and prevents the kind of odor that permeates a kitchen after a week of warm weather in a closed house. A baking soda and vinegar flush through bathroom drains and floor drains handles any residue in those locations at the same time.
Arrange a Neighbor Check-In
Even when all five plumbing steps are completed correctly, a trusted neighbor or friend checking on the home every two to three days provides a level of protection that no checklist can fully replace. Give them a walkthrough before leaving: where the main water shut-off valve is, what the sump pump looks like and how to confirm it is working, and what signs of a plumbing problem to watch for. A damp spot under a sink, water staining on a ceiling, or the sound of water running in a house that has been shut off are all things a neighbor can identify and report in time for the issue to be addressed before serious damage accumulates.
Leave the contact information for Aspen Plumbing Services and your own contact information in an accessible location. A neighbor who knows what to look for and who to call is the plumbing backup plan that makes the whole system work, because it ensures that any problem that develops despite preparation is caught early rather than allowed to run for the full duration of the absence.
What to Do If You Return to a Plumbing Problem
Finding a plumbing issue after returning home feels worse than it is in the moment, but the right sequence of responses minimizes the damage from that point forward. The first step is closing the main water supply if it was left open, which stops any active flow immediately. The second is documenting the visible damage with photographs before any cleanup or repair work begins, which is essential for an insurance claim. The third is calling a licensed plumber to assess the source and extent of the problem before any structural or cosmetic repairs are started, because a repair that covers visible damage without addressing the plumbing cause will fail again.
Most homeowners insurance policies cover sudden and accidental water damage, and a plumber who provides documentation of the cause and nature of the failure supports a claim effectively. A slow leak that was present before departure and was not addressed creates a more complicated insurance situation, which is another reason why the pre-vacation leak inspection and prompt repair of any discovered issues is the right approach rather than deferring until after the trip.
Schedule Your Pre-Vacation Plumbing Check With Aspen Plumbing Services
If you would rather have a licensed plumber walk through your home’s plumbing before a trip than rely on your own inspection, the team at Aspen Plumbing Services provides pre-vacation plumbing evaluations, leak detection, appliance supply line inspection, and any needed repairs for homeowners throughout Jackson, MI and the surrounding communities. A single service call before departure is significantly less disruptive than an emergency call after a week of undetected water damage.
Contact Aspen Plumbing Services today to schedule your pre-vacation plumbing inspection.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I turn off the water before every trip or only for longer ones?
For trips of three days or longer, shutting off the main water supply is worth the two minutes it takes. For a one or two night absence, turning off the main supply is optional but still a reasonable precaution if you are at all concerned about a slow leak you may have noticed recently. The main water shutoff is the single most effective step available because it limits the maximum damage from any failure that occurs while you are away, and the cost of turning it off is essentially zero.
What happens to my pipes if I leave the water off for a week?
Turning off the main water supply for a week causes no harm to the pipes or fixtures. Water left standing in the lines during that period remains clean and safe, and the system repressurizes immediately when the main valve is reopened. The only preparation needed before restoring the supply is opening a faucet as the valve is turned on to allow any air that has entered the lines to purge before drawing water for drinking or cooking.
Does leaving the water heater on while I’m away waste a lot of energy?
Yes, maintaining a full tank of water at temperature continuously while no one is using hot water is a meaningful ongoing energy cost. Switching to vacation or pilot mode for the duration of the trip saves that standby energy completely. Modern water heaters reach temperature within 30 to 60 minutes of being returned to their normal setting, so there is no practical inconvenience to turning them down before leaving. On a gas water heater, never turn the unit completely off unless you are draining it, as relighting a pilot light that has been fully extinguished involves additional steps that are easier to avoid.
How do I prevent sewer gas smells from developing in my home while I am away?
Sewer gas odors in an unoccupied home are almost always caused by dry drain traps. Running water through every drain and flushing every toilet immediately before leaving refills all traps and creates the water seals that block sewer gas. For extended absences, pouring a small amount of cooking oil or mineral oil down rarely used floor drains before leaving creates a surface film over the water in the trap that significantly slows evaporation and maintains the seal for weeks rather than days.
What is the most common plumbing problem that happens in unoccupied homes?
Supply line failures are the most consistently damaging plumbing problems in unoccupied homes because they release water continuously under full line pressure until the supply is shut off or the line runs out. Washing machine hoses and toilet supply lines are the two most common points of failure. Turning off the supply valves for the washing machine, dishwasher, and any other appliances with supply lines before leaving, combined with shutting off the main water supply, eliminates both sources of that category of damage.
What should I leave with the neighbor who is checking on my home?
Give them the location of the main water shut-off valve and a brief demonstration of how to close it, so they can act immediately if they find active water damage. Provide the contact number for Aspen Plumbing Services and your own contact information. Walk them through the basement or utility room briefly so they know what the water heater, sump pump, and any visible plumbing looks like normally, which makes it easier for them to identify if something looks wrong. A simple note listing what to check, where the shutoff is, and who to call takes five minutes to write and makes the neighbor check-in significantly more effective.
Aspen Plumbing Services proudly serves Jackson, MI, Calhoun, MI, Eaton, MI, Ann Arbor, MI, and East Lansing, MI. Questions about pre-vacation plumbing preparation or any of our services? Contact our team today.
