Water rising through the floor from an underfloor heating joint, Burpham
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.
- Location
- Burpham, Surrey (GU4)
- Property
- Residential property
- System
- Central heating with underfloor heating in the concrete section; suspended floors elsewhere
- First sign
- Boiler losing pressure within an hour of being reset
- Engineer
- Grant Corney, ADI Leak Detection
- Outcome
- Leak found; joint remade with crimped fittings; pressure held
What was happening
The boiler in the utility room was losing pressure within an hour of being topped up. Most rooms have suspended floors; the kitchen and dining area have a solid concrete floor with tiles and underfloor heating.
Water was coming up through gaps in the floor under the TV cabinet in the living room and collecting along the skirting boards.
How the leak was traced
Thermal imaging
Mapped the heating pipes across the house and showed a heat patch where the water was surfacing.
Acoustic listening
The acoustic microphone picked up clear leak noise over the same patch.
Damp meter
Readings were high around the same area, with water visible on the surface.
Visual inspection
Tiles were lifted only where the three methods agreed. Water was trapped underneath and the pipes were laid very shallow in the concrete.
What was found
A push-fit coupler on the plastic underfloor heating pipe had slowly backed off the pipe, most likely from movement in the structure over time.
What happened next
The pipe was cut back and rejoined with crimped fittings. The boiler was refilled, inhibitor added and the pressure watched on site with no further loss.
Because of the amount of water under the floor, drying the area before the flooring goes back is strongly recommended.
Start where the water shows, then map the pipes
Water showing at the skirting told the engineer which room to start in. Mapping the pipes and listening told him which tiles to lift.
Photos from the job
Water collecting at the skirting before the survey. 
Boiler pressure low within the hour. 
Damp meter at the top of its scale on the tiles. 
The coupler that had backed off the pipe. 
Rejoined with crimped fittings.
Case published by ADI Leak Detection. Photos taken by the engineer during the investigation.
