This post used to be a general list of home maintenance tips. In October 2026 we rewrote it from our own job files instead. Below are the actual causes behind water damage calls we ran across Tampa Bay over the past year, and what would most likely have prevented each one. We list the city and month for each job, never the address or the homeowner.
Washing machines and laundry rooms
Laundry rooms came up again and again in our files, and second-floor laundry rooms caused some of the worst damage. In Gulfport in June 2026, water from a second-floor washer spread into the hallway, an office and the living room, then down through the floor into the ceiling below (read the Gulfport job). In Land O’ Lakes in October 2025, a plugged laundry sink upstairs was left running and the water reached the stairwell and the ceilings downstairs. Two months later, also in Land O’ Lakes, a hot water line leaked inside the wall behind a washer and the water reached the front entry and the garage.
What helps:
- Replace rubber washer hoses with braided stainless steel hoses, and replace those every five years or so.
- Put the washer in a drain pan if the laundry room is upstairs.
- Put a battery water-leak alarm on the floor behind the washer and the water heater.
- Never leave a laundry sink running unattended, and know where the shut-off valves behind the washer are.
A/C condensate lines
In Seminole in July 2026, an A/C unit overflowed, soaked about half of the den carpet, got into the A/C return box and dripped through to the garage ceiling (read the Seminole job). In Florida an air conditioner pulls gallons of water out of the air every day, and all of it has to leave through one small drain line. When that line clogs with algae, the water goes somewhere else.
- Pour a cup of white vinegar into the drain line access by the air handler a few times a year.
- Look in the overflow pan under the air handler. Standing water there means the line is backing up.
- Ask your A/C technician to install or test a float switch, which shuts the system off when the pan fills.
Toilets and under-sink plumbing
Slow leaks do more damage than you would expect because nobody sees them. In Palm Harbor in April 2026, the homeowner found a puddle at the front of the garage. The source was a failed wax seal under the master bathroom toilet, and the water had spread under the flooring through six connected areas before it ever surfaced (read the Palm Harbor job). In Land O’ Lakes in March 2026, a slow kitchen leak left the floors dry but soaked the island drywall and cabinets, and the cabinet bottoms had microbial growth by the time they came out (read the Land O’ Lakes job).
- If a toilet rocks or you see staining around its base, have the wax seal replaced.
- Open the cabinets under every sink once a month and look and feel for dampness.
- Swollen or peeling cabinet toe kicks usually mean water has been sitting there for a while.
Pipes inside walls
In San Antonio, Florida in January 2026, we found standing water behind the dining room baseboards and followed it along the kitchen wall to a PEX connector leaking inside the pantry wall (read the San Antonio job). In St. Petersburg in September 2026, a broken pipe behind a master vanity wall affected the whole house (read the St. Petersburg job).
- Do a meter test: read your water meter, use no water at all for two hours, then read it again. If it moved, you have a leak somewhere.
- Pay attention to a water bill that jumps for no reason.
- Consider an automatic shut-off valve on the main line. It closes the water when it detects a leak.
Roofs, windows and doors
Not every leak leaves a stain. In Tierra Verde in July 2026 there was no stain on the wall, but the thermal camera still found water behind the crown molding and baseboard of a second-floor stairwell and in the garage ceiling below (read the Tierra Verde job). In Land O’ Lakes in March 2026, a crack in the stucco under a window let rain soak the carpet and baseboard inside. In Wesley Chapel in December 2025, water poured through a sliding glass door frame during a storm, most likely from the roof over the back porch.
- After a big storm, walk the inside of the house and look at ceilings, window sills and the floor along exterior doors.
- Have small stucco cracks around windows sealed before they let water in.
- If a wall near a window or door feels cool or looks swollen at the baseboard, have it checked with a moisture meter.
Condos: the leak may start next door
In a St. Petersburg condo in August 2026, a leak from the unit above saturated a bathroom’s walls and ceiling so badly they could not be dried in place (read the condo job). If you live in a condo, find out what your association covers and what your own unit policy covers before something happens, and let your neighbors know how to reach you.
Not every stain is a leak
Two of our recent calls turned out not to be plumbing leaks at all. In Lutz in January 2026, drywall tape was separating in a bathroom ceiling corner. The attic above was dry, and the cause was condensation from shower steam running down the walls. In Wesley Chapel in November 2025, a stain beside a tub kept coming back after being painted over at least five times. It lined up with a gap between the tub and the tub wall that let shower water get into the wall.
- Run the bathroom exhaust fan during every shower and for 20 minutes after.
- Keep the caulk between the tub and the wall intact.
- If a stain comes back after you paint over it, the water source is still there.
If you find water
Shut off the water at the fixture or the main, turn off power to any wet area at the breaker, and take photos before you move anything. Then call us at (813) 510-6137 in Tampa or (727) 273-7393 in St. Petersburg. We answer 24/7, we are on-site within 60 minutes, and the inspection is free.