A washer, dishwasher or water heater that leaks

Appliance and Water Heater Leaks in Canton, GA

A leaking appliance wets the floor, the cabinet base and sometimes the room below, and the leak may run for days before a stain shows. In Canton, Hickory Flat, Free Home, Sixes and Macedonia, call (678) 658-3988 and say which appliance it is, how old it is and whether the floor under it feels soft.

Call (678) 658-3988

Technician checking the supply hose behind a washing machine

Slow leaks keep their own calendar

EPA WaterSense counts more than 9,300 gallons lost to leaks per household each year, and says nine percent of homes leak at least 50 gallons every day. Neither figure follows a season. A hose that lets go in January looks like one that lets go in July, which is why the two-hour meter test is worth repeating after any stain appears. The Canton gauge adds nothing here; this problem runs on the appliance, not the weather.

What the contractor can look at

Call (678) 658-3988 with the appliance that leaked, its age and the time it may have been running; the contractor arranges the visit.
Readings from a moisture meter on the floor, at the foot of the cabinets and on the wall behind the appliance.
A look under flooring and cabinets for water that traveled, and at the ceiling below.
A note on the appliance itself. Texas A&M AgriLife advises having an appliance repair professional inspect a flooded appliance before it is reconnected, and says many can be saved.
A drying plan that matches what the readings show.
Repair options, and which parts bring paperwork; the offices page names the desks.

Step back and get help if

Gas in the air near a gas water heater or dryer: get outdoors without flipping a switch. From out there, either 911 or 877.427.4321 for the gas utility will take the report.
An appliance still plugged in with water pooling around it, or water reaching an outlet: stay on dry floor. If sparks fly or something smells burnt, step outside and dial the electric utility or 911.
Hot water spraying from a tank or its relief valve: stand clear and keep children away.
A ceiling below the appliance that droops, swells or drips: stay out of the room underneath, and keep the children and pets out too.

Habits that hide an appliance leak

Setting a towel under the machine and calling it handled. A towel hides a drip without measuring it.
Reconnecting an appliance that sat in water. Texas A&M AgriLife advises an appliance repair professional look at it first.
Skipping the room below. Water travels, and a ceiling stain downstairs can be the first sign.
Throwing away the paperwork. Keep the model label photo and any repair receipt; NAIC asks claimants to keep receipts for repairs.

Looks from the doorway

Keep to checks that feel easy from the doorway. None of them needs a tool, a ladder or a step into standing water.

Look at the hoses behind the washer and the supply line under the dishwasher for drips, damp rings or crusty buildup at the fittings.
UGA's checklist puts the water heater and the washer's supply lines on its leak list. Check the floor at the tank's base and the connections above it.
Put a dry paper towel on the floor under the appliance and check it after an hour.
Photograph the data label with the model number and the age, plus the leak and the floor around it.

Is it the appliance or the line behind it?

Pull the cabinet kick plate or look behind the machine only if you can do it from dry floor. Dry fittings and wet floor point at the appliance's own body.
Wet fittings point at the supply line or the valve.
Wet walls above the floor point at a pipe in the wall, which is the burst-pipe page's territory.
Whatever you find, photograph it and call (678) 658-3988 with the appliance, its age and the spot where the water first showed.

Three short answers

How urgent is a leaking appliance?

Red: a gas smell, a plugged-in cord in the water, or a sagging ceiling below. Leave; 911 or the utility comes first. Amber: the appliance is off and the floor is still wet. Use the call button. Green: a few drops in the pan and a dry floor around them.

How do I tell a slow leak from a one-time spill?

EPA WaterSense gives two tests. Read the water meter, wait two hours with no water use, and read it again; a change means a probable leak. For a toilet, drop food coloring in the tank, and color in the bowl after 10 minutes means a leak. The same page says the average household leak wastes more than 9,300 gallons a year.

Does the line cover Hickory Flat, Free Home, Sixes and Macedonia too?

Yes. A leaking appliance in Canton, Hickory Flat, Free Home, Sixes, GA and Macedonia, GA goes to the same contractor.

Who to ask about paperwork

A water heater at night, and the permit that follows

If a water heater gives out overnight, Cherokee County's service-permit page lets the replacement start before the paperwork, with the permit pulled soon after and an inspection to close it out. The page says permits go to technicians holding a state license. It covers addresses outside the city limits; the Development Service Center answers at (770) 721-7810. For a Canton address, ask Building and Safety Services at 770-704-1551. The offices page lists both.

Side notes

Checked 1 Nov 2026