Why am I getting leak alerts?

If you are receiving frequent leak alerts throughout the day for your regular usage, you may want to consider changing the alert thresholds in the StreamLabs App.

Before we dive in to the specific types of leak alerts and their thresholds, it is important to understand how leak alerts work. For example, it is possible that your app is set to send you an alert whenever a flow over 0.5 gallons per minute (gpm) occurs for more than 20 consecutive minutes. If your shower head uses 1.0 gpm and you take a 21 minute shower, your StreamLabs App will alert you of a leak because the flow rate and time duration both exceed the parameters that were set in the app to classify a slow leak.

If you are experiencing this type of behavior, it may be a good idea to adjust your leak alert thresholds. To do so, open your StreamLabs App, click on the Monitor that is sending you multiple alerts, and then click on the settings wheel in the top right corner. Click on "alerts" to open up the Alerts settings screen.

There are two types of alerts listed: Slow leaks and Major leaks. Each of these alert types can be modified to suit your personal water usage to reduce the number of alerts you receive for normal usage. 

Slow Leaks

Below are the three customizable flow rates for slow leak alerts and a common household example of each.

• 1 gpm – Small Leak. (Recommended)
• 25 gpm – Faucet Just Opened
• 5 gpm – Faucet half open
• 75 gpm – Faucet ¾ Open
• 0 gpm – Faucet fully open
• Disabled – Not recommended.

There are also multiple time durations you can select as well, ranging from five minutes to one hour. You will receive leak alerts for all flows that meet or exceed your selected parameters. 

Major Leaks

Major leaks have three customizable flow rates:

• 2 gpm – Toilet
• 3 gpm – Toilet and Faucet
• 4 gpm – Shower and Faucet (Recommended)
• 5 gpm – Outdoor Sprinkler
• 10 gpm – Garden Hose, no nozzle
• 15 gpm – Broken Main Line
• Disabled – Not recommended.

You can select from a range of time durations for these leaks, from 2.5 minutes to 30 minutes. All flows that meet or exceed these parameters will set off a Major Leak alert. 

Dwell Times:

• 5 sec – It is normal for some appliances like ice makers to fill with water for at least 5 seconds.
• 15 sec – Most ice makers and dish washers, don’t fill with water for more than 15 sec at a time. (Recommended)
• 30 sec – Some appliances need a little longer to fill with water.
• 1 minute – Water softeners can use water for 1 minute or longer.
• 5 minutes – Unusually long for any appliance or water softener.

False Positives

Despite these leak settings options, it is likely that you will still receive leak alerts for flows that aren't actual leaks. For example, if you run the laundry machine, dish washer, and shower consecutively, you may achieve a 20-minute period of flow greater than 1.0gpm which would set off an alert. Being aware of your home's water usage will help you to discern the difference between regular usage and potential leaks. 

Away Mode

If your Monitor/Control is currently set to Away Mode, you will receive leak alerts every time there is water running. You can read more about Home vs. Away Mode. 

Smart Home Integrations (Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa)

If you have paired your StreamLabs Monitor/Control with Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa, there may be a message being sent between the Google Assistant/Amazon Alexa device and your StreamLabs Monitor/Control that's causing the StreamLabs Monitor/Control to put itself into Away mode even if you are currently home. If you are receiving Away mode leak alerts even when your Monitor is in Home mode, check your integration with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa to see if either device is sending an accidental Away mode message.