Water in the house can be assigned to four areas:
• Drinking water
• water inside the heating system
• Rain and ground water
• Sewage
Drinking water constantly comes from the outside through the main water supply and is distributed inside the house via the house water distribution system to toilets and taps (for wash basin, shower, dishwasher, washing machine, bathtub).
Most installations connect domestic water distribution to hot water preparation, which distributes the heated water with or without a buffer water storage tank using a parallel distribution pipe system. A special feature of drinking water distribution is that water taken from the pipes or the hot water buffer tank is immediately replaced by fresh water from the domestic water connection. If there is a leak in the drinking water pipe, there is no inherent limit to the amount of water flowing out. Furthermore, the water distributions are permanently under a water pressure of 2 ... 8 bar favoring the occurrence of leaks.
This is different with the heating water circuit. This is a closed system with a certain and limited amount of water. Leakage and water loss can also occur here. The pressure loss in the heating circuit that arises as a result is quickly recognized here and the total amount of water that can escape from the circuit is limited.
External water sources such as rain, ground or flood water also lead to damage in the house. However, this damage is usually closely related to heavy rain events and therefore quite foreseeable.
Sewage water from the use of the drinking water supply is undoubtedly a danger to the building structure as well if there is a leak over a longer period of time. Sewage water is not under pressure and only flows when the drinking water supply has been used. Insurance statistics show that only well under one percent of all water damage is associated with wastewater.
Because of the unlimited inflow of water under pressure, the drinking water distribution is the central component where leakage protection in the house.
Damage caused by water from the drinking water distribution can now be divided into two areas:
• Malfunction: This denotes leaks in the distribution, i.e. corroded and leaky pipes or hoses or connectors or leaks in other faulty installation technology (warm water buffer tank, etc.).
• Incorrect operation: This includes the overflow of a sink, bathtub, or shower. Overflow usually occurs due to a combination of incorrect use, i.e. some persons forgets about turning off the water again and a partially or completely blocked overflow on the sink or the bathtub. Showers can cause an overflow when the sewage pipe is blocked due to the common mixture of soap, dirt hairs and other things that usually do not belong into a shower.
The insurance industry, the main victim of leaks, describes all events that lead to damage due to water in the house as "Escape of water".