Supply lines
The braided hoses under sinks and toilets and behind the washer and ice maker are under pressure all the time, whether anyone is home or not. A split hose on a week with no guests can soak a unit and the one below it.
Owners Who Live Somewhere Else
Second Homes and Vacation Rentals
A condo in Orange Beach or a rental house in Gulf Shores or Fort Morgan can sit empty for a week between guests, or for months in the off season. Water damage in an empty unit has all the time in the world.
This page is for owners who are not there: what fails when nobody is home, what happens when a storm lands between bookings, who should check the unit afterwards, and how the condominium’s policy and yours divide the loss.
Guest just found water?
If a guest or manager is reporting water in the unit right now, call {{PHONE}}. A person answers at any hour.
A leak in a lived in house is found in an hour. Someone hears it, steps in it, or sees the ceiling stain. In a second home, the same leak runs until the next guest opens the door, and in a condominium tower it runs into the unit below before it is found in yours.
Much of the water damage in empty beach units does not come from hurricanes. It comes from a supply line, a water heater or an air conditioner, on a quiet week in a building where nobody was looking. This page covers those failures first, then the storms, then the insurance and a checklist for locking up.
What Fails in an Empty Unit
Four things account for most of it, and all four are cheap to check before you leave.
The water heater
Tanks fail at the bottom, often slowly at first. In a closet or utility room, a small leak can run for days into subfloor and the wall behind before anyone sees a stain.
The AC condensate line
An air conditioner on this coast pulls a lot of water out of the air. That water leaves through a small drain line, and when algae clogs it, the pan overflows into the ceiling or closet. An empty unit with the thermostat set low keeps making condensate with nobody watching the pan.
Humidity with the AC off
Turning the air conditioning off to save power in summer lets the inside of the unit drift toward the outdoor air. The EPA advises keeping indoor humidity below 60 percent; a closed unit on the Gulf in August will not stay there on its own, and mold follows on drywall, mattresses and closets.
The answer to the last card is usually to leave the air conditioning running at a moderate setting while the unit is empty, with a clear drain line, rather than off. Ask your manager what the building or the association expects.
Storms Between Guests
Hurricane Sally showed what a slow storm does to empty units. The National Weather Service in Mobile recorded landfall at Gulf Shores at 5 a.m. on September 16, 2020, as a strong Category 2, moving at less than 5 mph. Over three days it dropped 29.99 inches of rain at Orange Beach and 29.30 inches near Fort Morgan, and, in the NWS’s preliminary survey, put 7 to 9 feet of water above ground in places across the back bays of southeast Baldwin County.
Owners who evacuated, or who live in another state, could not see their units for days. In a building, the damage often is not the unit’s own: wind driven rain through a balcony door, water from the unit above, or a roof shared by the whole building. More on the season is in our page on Hurricane Sally on both sides of the bay, and the deductible that applies is explained in hurricane deductibles and the Beach Plan.
Who Checks the Unit After a Storm
Decide this in May, not after a named storm. Write it down and give it to everyone involved.
Name one person
Your rental manager, a neighbor or a friend in Baldwin County who has a key and permission to go in once the roads open.
Agree on what they look for
Ceilings, the floor along exterior walls and balcony doors, closets that hold the water heater and air handler, and the smell of the unit when the door opens.
Ask for photographs and video
Wide shots of every room and close shots of any stain, dated, before anything is moved. The insurer will want them.
Know who may approve emergency work
If water is found at night, someone needs the authority to let a crew in and start drying. Put that in writing with your manager.
Tell the association
In a condominium, report water to the building manager or association at once. Water crosses unit lines, and the master policy may be involved.
Master Policy and Your Own Policy
In a condominium, two policies usually share a loss. Knowing where the line falls saves a long argument later.
The Insurance Information Institute describes the association’s master policy as covering "the common areas you share with others in your building." Some associations insure more of the building than that, and some only "the bare walls, floor and ceiling," leaving the owner to cover cabinets, wiring, plumbing and finishes inside the unit. Your own unit owner’s policy covers your belongings, the parts of the unit the master policy does not, and your liability.
| Question | Where to look |
|---|---|
| Where does the master policy stop? | The association’s bylaws and the master policy itself, from the board or the management company |
| Who pays for the unit below? | Your own policy’s liability coverage, and the association’s rules on unit lines |
| What if the association charges every owner? | Loss assessment coverage on your own policy, which the III describes as paying "your share of an assessment charged to all unit owners as a result of a covered loss" |
| Is flood covered? | Not by a standard homeowners or unit owner policy; see flood zones and flood insurance |
| Does a rental change the policy? | Ask your agent whether short term rental use is allowed on your policy |
For rental houses that are not in a condominium, there is no master policy, and your own dwelling policy carries the whole loss. Owners who manage several properties can read how we work on our pages for property managers and HOAs and condominium associations.
A Checklist for Leaving the Unit
Before you lock the door
[ ] Shut off the main water valve, or at least the water to the washer and ice maker, if the building allows it.
[ ] Look at every supply hose for bulges, rust at the fittings or a damp cabinet floor.
[ ] Check the water heater pan and the floor around the tank.
[ ] Have the AC condensate line flushed as the manufacturer recommends, and make sure the pan is dry.
[ ] Leave the AC on at a moderate setting rather than off, so humidity stays down.
[ ] Close balcony doors fully and check the seals and the sliding track.
[ ] Photograph every room on your way out, so a claim has a before picture.
[ ] Leave the name of your contact person and our number, {{PHONE}}, with your manager.
If water is found, the first day matters most. Drying a unit and the one below it within the first day or two is what keeps the job to drywall and flooring rather than cabinets and framing, and our water damage restoration crews document each room for the adjusters on both policies.
Questions From Out of Town Owners
Should I turn off the water in my Orange Beach condo when I leave?
If the building allows it and nothing in the unit needs water while you are gone, yes. A closed main valve stops supply line and water heater leaks from running for days. Some buildings share valves or have fire sprinkler lines in units, so ask the building manager first.
The unit above mine in Gulf Shores leaked into my ceiling. Whose insurance pays?
It depends on where the water came from and where your association’s master policy stops. Report it to the association and your own insurer right away, photograph everything, and let the adjusters sort out the shares. Drying should not wait for that answer.
A storm passed and I cannot get down for a week. What should I do?
Have your contact go in as soon as the roads open, photograph every room, and look at ceilings, balcony doors and closets. If they find water, start drying right away and report the claim. A week of Gulf Coast humidity in a wet unit is how mold starts.
Sources for this page
- NWS Mobile, Hurricane Sally, landfall time, forward speed, rain at Orange Beach and Fort Morgan, and back bay surge.
- Insurance Information Institute, insuring a co op or condo, the master policy, bare walls coverage and loss assessment.
- Insurance Information Institute, what is covered by standard homeowners insurance, the flood exclusion.
- EPA, a brief guide to mold, moisture and your home, indoor humidity below 60 percent and the drying window.
Water in a Unit You Are Not In?
A person answers 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Have the unit number and the name of whoever can let the crew in.