Question: about the WaterCop and the Flood Stop
Q:"Does Safe Home Products have an opinion as to the comparison between Water Cop and Flood Stop? I've read the product guides and understand the product's features. Which is more reliable or has the best track record? Thanks, David S"
Answer: Your decision needs to be made upon these factors:
1. What do you want to protect? A single appliance or several appliances? Floodstop makes single water appliance units for water heaters, washing machines, sinks, icemakers, etc.
2. What do you want to spend? A Floodstop unit currently sells for well under $200. Most sizes of the package of a
WaterCop valve, actuator and 3 moisture sensors sells for under $550 at this time.
3. Are you hiring a plumber or are you doing the installation yourself? Many do-it-yourself persons can install the WaterCop themselves.
4. Have you a need to shut off all the water in your home with a single push of a button or remote wall switch? Remember that if a
WaterHound moisture sensor alarm is activated, you will know by two ways, no water anywhere within that zone and a 65 decibel alarm.
Operational problems are extremely rare with either device. If you do not activate either devices at least every 30 days, you may have problems with the ball valve turning easily depending upon what kinds of minerals you have in your water.
If you have only one appliance to protect and it is, for example, a washing machine, the Floodstop is easily installed without the expense of a plumber. If you want to protect several appliances (as I did), the plumber is well worth the expense as is the additional cost for a WaterCop as the basic system comes with the valve, the actuator and three water/moisture sensors. And you can always add additional sensors to the unit for other appliances. When you add the cost of 3 or 4 Floodstops, you soon can approximate the cost of a single watercop. You can also buy a
dual probe moisture sensor for the WaterCop and install it as I had done, under the water dispensing fridge and at the water entry point as well.
On the other hand, in apartment buildings or condos where each unit has its own water heater, installing a
Floodstop in the 3/4 inch valve size is quite cost effective as several of our plumber customers who specialize in condo and high rise apartment buildings have concluded. And if your main worry is your washing machine, installing one of the two Floodstop units
the standard AM-FS34H-90 or the INLINE Washing Machine FloodStop FS3/4H is all you may need.
Add a pair of
Floodchek washing machine hoses and you are as safe as a person with a washing machine can be.
The Watercop is made by one of the nation's oldest and most respected ball valve manufacturers (USA Made). These brass ball valves are used in industrial applications. The Watercop is a recent (past 6 or 8 years) products.
The Floodstop is made in China or a similar place. The ball valve is high quality but made to commercial standards like those made by Dynaquip whose ball valves are used primarily in applications with chemicals.
I hope this helped to answer your question.
Sincerely, Barbara