After water damage in a Smyrna home, mold often announces itself with a musty smell or dark speckling on a wall, ceiling or baseboard that was wet at some point. It lives on moisture. Spots where a leak used to be? Call (678) 679-5538 and say when the area got wet.
See the paired job: Mold after waterWashers, dishwashers and tanks that leak in Smyrna
Appliance and Water Heater Leaks in Smyrna, GA
A washer hose, a dishwasher line, an ice maker tube or a tired tank can all let go in a Smyrna house, and the water often travels well past the appliance before anyone sees it. Puddle by the washer? Call (678) 679-5538, name the machine and say how long water has been coming out.
Checked 1 Nov 2026
Get out and get help if
- Water gathering around plugged-in appliances or outlets means keeping out. A spark or burnt smell is the cue to walk outside and phone 911 or Georgia Power.
- Gas at the water heater or dryer: leave the house, flip no switches, and from outside phone 911 or the gas utility, Atlanta Gas Light, at 877.427.4321.
- Hot water spraying from a tank or line: stay back, and use the water utility if the shutoff is out of reach. In Smyrna, that is (770) 431-2850.
- Water dripping through a ceiling under the appliance: keep clear of the floor below and phone 911 if the ceiling comes down.
Cobb County notes
Among the causes of catastrophic leaks, EPA WaterSense names a burst pipe, a water heater that fails and a hose on a washing machine that gives way. Moisture sensors near water heaters and behind washers are part of its advice.
A University of Georgia Extension seasonal checklist asks for water heaters to be checked for leaks and corrosion, the relief valve to be tested and leaking washer hoses to be replaced.
A rubber hose, a valve and a spreading puddle
A washing machine is pulled away from the laundry room wall in the photo, with a rubber supply hose dripping at the back. A technician kneels and closes the valve while a puddle spreads across the floor. The hose connections and the shutoff valves behind a washer are the first spots to look at.
Gather these first
Gather these from a dry spot before the call. Nothing here asks you to step into water, lift an appliance or open a wall.
- Standing on a dry spot, sweep a flashlight over the floor around the appliance, looking for rust or beads of water. Do not drag a heavy appliance out.
- Check washer hoses and valves for any bulge or drip. A University of Georgia checklist says leaking hoses get replaced.
- Look at the bottom of the water heater for damp spots or rust, then leave any repair to a plumber.
- Take a photo of the label showing model and age, and another of the wet area, before moving anything.
Hoses, valves and tanks: the usual weak spots
Washers and dishwashers draw water through supply hoses that screw onto shutoff valves. Ice makers and refrigerators use a thin line behind the unit. A water heater is a tank with fittings, a relief valve and a drain.
A drip at any joint can run down behind the appliance and into the floor, out of sight.
What to ask once the appliance is off
- Which hose, valve, tank or drain was the source, and who repairs or replaces it?
- How far under the floor and behind the cabinet base did the water travel?
- Which materials can be dried, and which, like swollen cabinet bottoms, are headed for replacement?
- Does swapping the tank or the machine raise a permit question?
- What does the drying plan look like around the appliance?
Appliance leak slips
- Mopping and moving on
- Water travels behind the machine and under the floor, and on EPA's flood page wet drywall and wood can grow mold after 24 hours.
- Shrugging off a small drip
- EPA WaterSense names washing machine hose failures among catastrophic leaks.
- Reusing a worn hose
- The University of Georgia checklist says leaking washer hoses get replaced.
Swapping a tank or a machine
Water heater replacement is named on Marietta's permit page, Smyrna's Building Division lists mechanical equipment replacement, and Mableton's page lists plumbing and mechanical work indoors. Phone your town's office before a tank goes in. The three offices are in rules for all three towns.
Often travels with
Slow leaks: Appliance trouble and the damp it leaves
Pages behind these facts
- U.S. EPA WaterSense, Know Your Flow and Curb Water Waste (Feb 2026)
- University of Georgia Cooperative Extension, Home Maintenance Checklist, Circular 1082 (reviewed June 2021)
- City of Marietta, Building Permits
- City of Smyrna, Building Division
- City of Mableton, Building Division
- City of Smyrna, Utility Services Frequently Asked Questions
- Atlanta Gas Light, Emergency Information