Experiance with Floodstopper - whole house water leak detection

["Jax" <jax@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

There have been some questions about these devices - I just installed
one.  We have been worried about water damage in the house we just
moved into.
I considered both the "floodstopper" (http://www.a-leak-detector.com/)
and "watercop" (http://www.watercop.com/).  I settled on the
"foodstopper" since it had both wired and wireless controls (didn't
want or need to depend on wireless in all locations - it seemed
stupid to put a wireless sensor 15 feet from the valve).  The watercop
also doesn't allow any number of sensors per transmitter.  But, the
floodstopper is more expensive (both seem overpriced) and seemed a bit
more professional.  The entire system was over $600!
I ordered from http://www.a-leak-detector.com/ without a problem and
the unit operates as advertised, very simple to operate.  I used 10
sensors from the controller and 2 wireless transmitters for those hard
to reach places.
I had a plumber install the valve ($85) and did the rest myself.  It
did take longer than I expected to install, runtime wires nicely, mount
everything, etc.  Since the sensors are cheap and can be daisy chained
I put them all-over, sinks, toilets, and of course the laundry and hot
water.  One note - you have to mount the valve horizontally, this
worked for me (by remotely mounting the control box) but it could be an
issue for some.
Issues I have with the system; It doesn't have an audible alarm, I
didn't read the model description carefully and missed this.  So, you
could have a leak, it could shut off your water and you would not even
know all night.  Since there is latent pressure in the lines water
still runs for a while after the shutoff.  Also, there is no way to
bypass it, E.G. you are going to mop the floor or want the water on
even if there is a puddle someplace.  I emailed them about this and
they just said it is as it is.  This is a VERY simple device - one
transistor and some relays.  It should have every bell and whistle
for$600+!
So - I do have working leak detection, my wife has one less thing to
worry about - it was a lot of work and there are some issues.  I
frankly don't know if I would do it again, I may use the watercop (it
does have an alarm and, of course, has no wires), or, I may just have
something make noise if there were a leak.