Ten jobs ADI Leak Detection has published, chosen because the leak was under a floor. Each one sets out the symptoms, every method used and what it showed, what was found and what happened next. The photos were taken by the engineer on the day.
Several of these jobs were in homes with underfloor heating where the heating turned out not to be the leak. We have kept them because they show why testing comes before digging.
Leaks on the loops themselves, and leaks on other pipes in floors that have underfloor heating.
Acoustics and tracer gas were both misled by the way the pipes were laid. Warm water and a thermal camera showed the real pipe route and a faint mark at the leak.
Leak located; repaired by the site plumbers
With underfloor heating everywhere, the heating looked like the obvious suspect. Testing each supply in turn showed the leak was on a hot water T-piece behind a boiler room wall.
Leak found on the hot supply; fitting replaced; retest held
The circuit would not hold any pressure. Air at 2 bar could be heard escaping through a wall, and acoustic equipment followed it to one corner of the room.
Leak found; temporary repair; part re-run in copper
It looked like an underfloor heating leak. Isolation testing put it on the water softener bypass instead, and thermal, acoustic, tracer gas and moisture readings all pointed to one threshold.
Leak found at the kitchen threshold; copper pipe replaced; retest clear
Water was rising through gaps in the living room floor. Three methods agreed on one spot, a few tiles were lifted, and a push-fit coupler had slid off the plastic heating pipe.
Leak found; joint remade with crimped fittings; pressure held
With fourteen underfloor zones, the heating was the natural suspect. Testing each section showed the underfloor circuits were sound and the leak was on the radiator pipework.
Leak found on radiator pipework; fitting replaced; retest passed
Heating and water pipes buried in solid ground floors.
The kitchen floor was saturated. Thermal imaging marked two areas, an air test showed the pipe held nothing, and opening the utility room slab found a corroded pipe.
Leak found under the slab; repaired in copper; re-pipe recommended
Nothing showed on the surface. Thermal imaging mapped the pipes, tracer gas found a strong signal under the kitchen within ten minutes, and only the laminate and screed above it came up.
Leak found; 22mm copper section replaced; held at 2 bar
Pipes to a radiator that had been removed years before were still live under the kitchen. The cold feed had also worn through where it rubbed against them.
Two leaks found and repaired; pipes protected
Pipes in the void under floorboards and wooden floors.
Another engineer had confirmed the system was leaking but not where. Thermal, moisture, acoustic and tracer gas readings agreed on the living room before a single board was lifted.
Pinhole found; section replaced in copper
