Leak Repairs

Why do I need to repair the leak?

Aside from getting your water bill back to normal if you have a leak in your domestic system, getting the leak repaired is essential to the structural integrity of the house. When water gets below a slab and stays there, it will compromise the foundation that the house sits on, which can cause all sorts of cracks, slanted floors, and doors and windows not opening and closing. If you have a warranty on your foundation from work being done, just remember: it’s not acknowledging and fixing the leak that can be detrimental to your warranty, it’s knowing you have a leak and not doing anything about it that isn’t good.

Creating an access point

There are two ways to get to a leaking point. Either the plumber can tunnel to the problem pipe, or they can create an access point through the floor. To create an access point, the plumber will have to jackhammer a hole into the slab in order to get to the location of the leak.

Tunneling

Of the two ways to get to a leaking point, tunneling is not always the best method. On average the plumber will create a 3’x3′ hole from the outside and tunnel to the pipe that is broken. While this isn’t generally the best way to get to fresh water leaks, it can be used to get to sewer system pipes.

Tunneling exterior Breakout

Piping

After the damaged pipe has been exposed – physical pipe repair then commences and the damage lines/fittings are replace with schedule 40 PVC line- this is the industry standard*.  After the repairs are complete, another hydrostatic test is always ran to insure the recently repaired lines are no longer leaking and that the system integrity is now 100%.

piping picture

Before or after foundation repair

From a plumbing perspective, fixing a leak is best reserved for after foundation repair. This is because when a foundation is lifted, there are times when it will cause more plumbing issues. Most foundation companies have it stated in their general conditions that they are not responsible for any leaks that result from work done on the house. Please do not mean that a leak location should not be performed before foundation work. It is always best to contact the foundation company that holds the warranty in order to determine the best course of action; for example, MBR Guaranteed Foundation Repairs will want to locate the leak, then send out a representative before the leak is fixed.

*This is for sanitary leaks.