Water Leak

If you have questions about leak detection, we have the answers! Our goal is to give our customers all of the information they need pertaining to water leaks and leak detection so they get a good understanding of the products and services we offer them.

A pipe or area with no leak sounds different than a pipe or area that has a leak or leaks. Smaller leaks emit a sound that is too high of a frequency for people to hear, and this is where leak detectors come in. Certain leak detectors take this sound and convert it to a level you can hear through a pair of headphones. As you get closer to the leak, the sound gets louder.

You can also use thermal imaging to detect changes in temperature or pressure-sensing gauges to find out whether or not there is a change in the pipe's pressure or heat. If there is, this is a good indication that you have a leak. The leak detector helps to pinpoint exactly where the crack or leak is.

It can be difficult to look and spot obvious evidence of a leak until it's farther along or it has done more damage to your home or building. Ideally, you want to catch any leaks early to minimize the damage and repair cost. Common signs of a water leak include:

• Water Bill Increase - If your water bill spikes suddenly and you don't change your habits, it could be a sign of a leak. You may want to ask around in your neighborhood and see if anyone has experienced a price increase.

• Water Stains - Eventually, the leaking water will start to form dark stains on your ceiling, walls, or flooring. Look for a warped or discolored area of wood. This is typically what you'll see right around where you have a leak.

• Noises - Hissing or dripping sounds are one of the more obvious indications that you have something going on. Listen for these sounds near your toilet or fixtures. If you hear them, you most likely have a leak.

• Puddles or Damp Spots - Unless you have a pet that has accidents or if you spill something, your floor shouldn't be wet. If puddles or damp spots appear for seemingly no reason, it could be a leak coming to the surface.

A leak detection test will tell whether or not you have a leak in your pipes and the general area where the leak is if you have one. Different types of leaks require different leak detection tests, and these tests include:

• Pressure Test- To determine if your home's pipes have a leak, one of our technicians will drop a small inflated ball down your pipes. If you don't have any leaks, water should back up. If you do, water will continue to flow even with the ball in place.>

• Color Camera- We can use a color sewer camera to visually inspect the pipes for obvious cracks or holes. We'll feed the camera down into the pipes to do a brief visual inspection.>

• Thermal - Thermal testing looks for differences between gas and air, and this can cause temperature discrepancies.

No matter which type of leak detection test you use, the goal is to find differences in pressure, sound, or temperature to detect leaks. A change in pressure indicates that you could have a leak that reduces the pressure of the water in the pipes.

If you're searching for a leak in your gas lines instead of water lines, an ultrasonic leak detection unit listens to the gas and air escaping from the lines to pinpoint the source of the leak. The noise will get louder the closer you get to the leak.

To start, you want to locate your water meter. Once you do, go around your property and shut off every possible water fixture you have. When you shut them all off, go back and check your water meter. If it's still spinning, you've confirmed that you have a leak somewhere.

You can also take a look back at your water bills to see if there was a spike anywhere recently. If you find one, and then notice that your water bill rose or stayed consistently higher after the spike, you may have found the point where the pipes developed a leak.

As soon as you know that you have a leak, you want to contact a professional company to come in and confirm if you have a leak so they can fix it. It won't go away on its own and it could get markedly worse as time goes on.

If your water main breaks or leaks, you'll need a professional company to come in and repair it. Depending on the severity of the leak, this could be on an emergency basis. On average, you should expect to pay between $800 and $1,100 to fix a leak. If it's outside your property line, it could be the city or county's responsibility to fix.

You should expect to pay a maximum of around $2,000 to repair it. The biggest factor that determines the repair cost is the leak's location. How easy it is to get access to the damaged or broken portion dictates how expensive it is to perform the repair. If it's under your home's foundation, for example, expect to pay more because it's more time-consuming to get at it.

If you're planning on replacing the water main entirely, you can expect to spend between $2,500 and $5,000 depending on the placement. It all depends on where the break is on the pipe, how deep the pipes are, access points, and the local permits and rates.

If you have more questions, concerns or a problem with water leaks, contact us today!