On Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:38:37 -0800 (PST),
wrote:

Finishing my basement. Regardless of whether I put carpet or
engineered hardwood, I don't want the flooring to be ruined (or be a
bed for mold growth) if the water heater decides to go, which will
eventually happen (10 years old now). I've heard horror stories of
several inches of water flooding the basement when these systems
fail. My water heater and furnace are going to be in a separate
10x14' room as I finish the basement, so is there anything I can do to
mitigate the risk of ruining the flooring in the main room should the
water heater fail after the basement project is complete? I was
thinking along the lines of some caulk or sealant along the floor
plate to isolate the mechanical room somewhat - although a long enough
leak before noticing it would still rise above the floor plate and
into the adjacent room. Any ideas? How do others deal with this?
Proactively replace the water heater? Deal with the wetness and just
try to dry out wet carpets/wood flooring? Thanks


I have a water tank pan under the water tank. I ran a PVC pipe to
the outside and into the downspout. You could put a battery-operated
moisture alarm in the pan.

Still, it is a good idea to caulk the flooring-shoe molding interface.
This will help stop moisture and insects and make it easier to keep
the floor clean. A better option for the basement is vinyl flooring.