Smart Home Plumbing Technology Trends
Smart plumbing is now one more way homeowners can automate their lives and protect their homes. Did you know that water damage is five times more likely than theft and six times more likely than fire? Even a small leak can cause significant destruction in the areas of the home in which it occurs. Water damage is expensive to repair due to irreversible damage to drywall, flooring, wood surfaces, and personal belongings. Mold is also likely to occur in the flooded area and can be expensive to properly mitigate. We have all heard the stories told by those who have lived through water damage in their home. Many were unaware that a leak was present until they walked into a flooded area of their home way too late to salvage anything. Until now, only preventative measures would decrease the chances of water damage occurring in your home. Technology has automated the home in so many ways, and the latest advancements are around the different infrastructures of the home such as plumbing.
While smart home technology isn’t anything new, smart plumbing is. The Flo by Moen allows you to control your home’s water supply 24/7 from your smartphone. If a leak or change in water pressure was to occur your phone notifies you and will automatically shut off the water supply.
That’s right! The Flo by Moen is the latest in water supply monitoring technology which monitors the supply side of your home’s plumbing network. The Flo by Moen is a 24/7 plumbing monitoring system that is controlled from your smartphone. The system is supported by FloSense artificial intelligence which learns the unique water footprint of your home to then be able to identify water usage irregularities and inconsistencies keeping your home protected. At its most basic level, Flo will detect and warn you about a water leak or change in water pressure and automatically shut off the main water supply in the event of something catastrophic such as a burst pipe.
From your smartphone, you can respond to an alert and manually shut off the water to your home. If you are not near your phone the system is smart enough to automatically shut the water off. Additionally, Flo by Moen runs daily plumbing network health tests with MicroLeak technology to ensure your home is leak-free.
Here’s how it works, there are sensors inside the Flo valve that measure water pressure, water temperature, and the rate of flow (measured in gallons per minute). The during the daily tests mentioned earlier the Flo valve shuts off the water supply to the home and then monitors for any drop in water pressure indicating leaks beyond the valve. The Flo learns you’re your home’s water usage patterns and will run these tests during a time when there is consistently low water usage such as late at night so that you are not inconvenienced. Flo sends this information to the cloud and your smartphone so you can stay one step ahead of any water leaks. You can also, manage your home’s water usage from your phone which can lower your water bills and save you money each month.
At Elevate Design + Build we are excited to offer the Flo by Moen as a smart plumbing option on all of our newly constructed homes. The best time to install Flo by Moen is during the plumbing phase of the construction of your new home. The Flo by Moen can be installed on existing homes as well and you are advised to call a professional plumber to install the technology correctly. Our local plumbers are Flo by Moen experts and confirm that smart plumbing is essential to protecting your home from water damage.
Contact your Elevate team today to learn more. yourteam@elevatedesignbuildkc.com or 816-622-8826.