Apartment Turnover Plumbing Checklist for Arizona

Seven items cover most of it: shutoffs, supply lines, toilets, drains, the water heater, faucets and a leak check. Every Arizona landlord has to keep plumbing in good and safe working order under A.R.S. 33-1324, and a vacant unit is the cheapest time to find what is wrong. Do it between residents, not after the first complaint.

Write down what you find. A.R.S. 33-1321 requires a move-in form for existing damage and an itemized list of deductions within fourteen business days after move-out. Plumbing notes with dates and photos are the evidence for both.

Open and close every angle stop and the unit shutoff, and replace any that do not seal. A stuck stop under a sink is a flood waiting for a resident with a wrench. Phoenix's plumbing code requires a shutoff on the supply to each fixture and appliance, with access. Look at braided supply lines for rust at the nuts, bulges and kinks. They are cheap to swap while the unit is empty. Our FAQ on whether each apartment needs a shutoff valve explains the unit-level and riser-level options.

Flush every toilet three times and watch the tank and the base. A toilet that runs, rocks or weeps at the base is a repair now, not a turnover surprise. A fill valve or flapper is quick. A leak at the base can mean a failed wax ring or a cracked flange, which is a bigger job. Toilet leaking at the base shows what is happening, and our toilet repair service covers the work.

Run every faucet, tub and shower and watch the drains. Fill a sink and release it. Water that drains slowly or gurgles points to a partial blockage, and the kitchen is the usual spot. For a unit above others, the problem may be the shared stack, as in kitchen stack clogs in apartment buildings. A cable handles a unit line, and the stack calls for jetting. A smell in a unit that has been empty for weeks is usually a dry trap; run water in every drain and see sewer smell in only one apartment unit.

Check the data plate, the pan, the relief valve and the connections. The data plate gives the manufacture date, and a tank near the end of its life, rusting at the bottom or weeping from the relief valve, is a replacement. The model plumbing code expects a relief valve whose discharge pipe is not trapped, ends at an air gap and is visible to occupants, and a pan with an indirect drain where a leak would cause damage. A.R.S. 33-1324 also requires reasonable hot water, so run a hot tap and confirm it gets hot.

We replace tank water heaters, including haul-away of the old unit, with Bradford White and A. O. Smith supply-house units. If a heater in a closet leaks, see water heater leaking from the bottom. Our water heater page has the details.

Turn every fixture off and read the meter. A moving meter means a leak. If the unit has its own submeter, submeter versus utility meter leak check explains how to isolate it. Check under sinks, behind toilets, around the water heater and at the ceiling below. Pressure above 80 psi stresses every joint, and Phoenix's code requires a reducing valve past that limit.

You can handle a flapper, a fill valve, an aerator, a supply line and a drain strainer, and a maintenance tech can run the test sequence above. Call a plumber for a shutoff that will not close, a toilet that rocks, a heater leak, a slow drain after a cable, or a meter that moves.

A turnover is also a good time to schedule bigger fixes in a vacant unit, before the next lease starts and the entry rules apply again.

We handle shutoff and supply replacements, toilet repair, faucet and drain work, cable and jetter work on stacks and water heater replacements. We offer 24/7 emergency service, free estimates and upfront pricing before work starts. See emergency plumber, drain cleaning, water heaters and our multifamily plumbing page.