How Can A Water Line Be Found In A Slab?
A slab leak is a mutual occurrence in areas with unstable soil. In the olden days, most of the homes were built on concrete slabs or piers and beams, because of which they cracked and finally broke the basement wall. The main reason for a slab leak is leaky pipes or could have joints that are within the soil.
Sometimes, the soil under a house causes a slab to become less stable and strain more due to erosion. So, the pipes under the slab crack. Some of these cracks are big, while others are small, like the hairline. Once the water enters the slab, it can cause severe damage, which you cannot imagine.
Some of the risks of severe water damage are the flooring, furniture, appliances, and walls. Fixing a leak underneath a ton of concrete is a highly complex task. So, if you are thinking of going for a do-it-yourself approach, then it will not work. In that case, the best option is to call a water leak detection technician in Orange County.
Before we jump into how professionals find a water line in a slab, let’s first discuss the reasons for the occurrence of a slab leak?
All You Need To Know About Slab Leak
The chances of you having a slab leak are low if you live in a basement or crawlspace. When the pipes are enclosed in concrete beneath the foundation, it is known as under-slab plumbing, where slab leak occurs.
Installing water pipes under your foundation wasn’t a mistake, and it may even be the cheapest way to provide water. In the early days, copper pipes are used to get the water.
You could see the connections of copper pipes if you had equipment called x-ray vision at home, which plumbing professionals use to find the waterline. These lines carry hot and cold water to your nozzles, bathrooms, washing machines, and other faucets.
Vital Reasons For Slab Leak
Various reasons for slab leak occurrence in your home or business are:
Building Defects
When pipes are not high quality or do not fit together correctly, leaks may occur. However, corrosion in pipes occurs when water flows over copper pipes, incredibly when abrasive, and this process is more common in older homes where copper pipes are installed.
Ensure that you know everything about the pipe before replacing it with a jackhammer. Apart from that, you can also hire professional leak detecting plumbers to find the leak and replace the pipe so that your personal life does not get disturbed.
Abrasion
Due to this, the sink and appliance supply lines will scrape your concrete slab. Other objects, such as gravel, dirt, and wires, can block the pipes.
Rubbing a pipe against concrete can damage the foundation. Apart from that, the water will also leak into your slab foundation if the pipes in your plumbing system deteriorate.
Acidic Water
Some areas have high acidic water. Acidic water may cause the slab foundation pipes to corrode and crack. If the PH value is greater than 4, it is hard water.
Using a water softener can reduce the number of minerals in your water. They will also help keep your pipes in good condition. However, they are unable to protect your foundation’s pipes.
Your slab foundation will leak if you have too much alkaline water in your area. So, to check the water, whether it is alkaline or not, see the water in your sink, shower, and toilet for green or blue stains.
Shifting Soil
An earthquake or normal erosion can affect the soil under the concrete slab. A simple change in the soil can trigger a leak, and the damage can be severe and extensive.
Corrosion Or Cracks In Copper Pipes
The older homes use copper sewer pipes that are more likely to leak under the slab. A salt solution in water causes copper pipes to rust. Water with a pH higher than 8.5 or copper pipes that are not adequately grounded or have low pH water in your area will cause a slab leak.
Ways To Find A Water Line In A Slab
Digging The Trench
It is one of the common methods to find a water line in a slab. Trenches are dug so that they should not damage any of the joints, creating dips or bend in the pipe. Apart from that, it should be wide enough to work and allow the use of compaction equipment.
While digging the trench along the house latest equipment is used so that the work will be fast and you can easily repair any water leak without much damage.
Tunneling
Tunneling is another alternative that helps the professional reach the water line under a slab foundation. Through this process, the plumber can quickly repair leakage in your home without coming inside your house. However, this method is astounding as it keeps all the chaos, mess, and plumber outside your home. In other words, you can say tunneling will allow you to keep using your home normally while repairs are going on.
Moreover, it is an effective technique that is quite safe for fixing a home’s underground plumbing issues. Some of the steps of tunneling are: –
- Determining the location of the tunnel so that professionals can reach plumbing failures
- Planning the path of the tunnel
- Digging the tunnel
- After that, our professionals in Orange County will carry leak detection and repair services to fix the plumbing issues
- Last, filling the tunnel which is quite an essential step to avoid future problems
Infrared Cameras
Water leaks and moisture infiltration under a slab indeed cause severe damage to the building or house, which is difficult to detect from outside. However, if you go for conventional inspection, it will lead to digging up floors, resulting in significant expenditure both in terms of labor and material.
But with the advancement of technology, this process has become easy with the help of infrared cameras. Infrared cameras help professional leak detecting plumbers find the water line coming into your home.
These infrared cameras offer a cost-effective and time-saving solution for finding the water line under a slab.
Signal Generators
Another effective method to find a water line in a slab is called a signal generator. A signal generator is a tool connected to a conductive material like a copper pipe and secondary cable earthed inside the ground via an earthing spike.
When connected to the signal generator, it sends a pre-selected frequency signal through a line that allows the professional to track the water line in a slab.
Latest Listening Devices
Apart from the above ways, the professional can also find a water line in a slab with the help of the latest listening devices. Examples are electronic amplification equipment, electromagnetic pipelines, locators, video pipe inspection equipment, gas tracer systems, etc. All of these are the latest listening equipment of the professionals by which you can easily find a water line in a slab. They will offer seamless leak detection and repairs in Orange County.
Helium Detection
To find a water line in a slab, the professionals take the help of helium as a trace gas. It is used with an instrument called a Mass Spectrometer Leak Detector or MSLD, by which the water line can get traced quickly. Apart from the waterline, this method can also measure the size of the leak. However, the reason to use helium is it has a tiny molecule that is relatively safe, non-flammable, and non-toxic.
Signs To Watch Out For Ensuring Water Leak Underground
Now the question is, how will you come to know there is a slab leak in your home or business?
- You hear water running under the floor, but all your home taps and electrical appliances are off.
- Water pressure has decreased in your home faucets, and there is a spike in the water bill.
- You are noticing warm spots on the floor.
- The carpets and rugs of your home are damp or wet.
- An unpleasant odor is coming inside your home.
- You can see a visible shift in the soil around your home
- You are noticing foundation cracks.
- Water is pooling inside your home without knowing where it is coming from.
These are some of the signs that will help you find a slab leak in your home. So, don’t hesitate to call professional leak detecting plumbers as ignoring the issue may cause water damage.
What Do Professionals Do To Fix Slab Leaks?
Fixing Trenchless Slab Leaks
Trenchless plumbing repair is necessary for the restoration of a slab leak. But for that, a couple of access holes are essential for this repair so that you can solve the problem. Sub-slab leaks are best dealt with using this method since this is not destructive.
Sub-slab leak repairs are cost-efficient, so to resolve the issue, contact technicians to fix broken pipelines with epoxy. Camera inspections will help determine the extent of the damage.
It takes less than an hour to put a pipe, inflate it, and cure it without using any tools. Using pipe splitters makes it possible to repair the pipes by installing larger ones.
Pipe Rerouting And Repiping
The plumbers use repiping whenever they are dealing with more than one pipe. To avoid leaks, they install brand-new lines.
Rerouting pipes also causes demolishing of walls and floors. It is ideal if you need to replace just a few tubes.
Call professional leak detecting plumbers today for water leak detection, repair, and pipe fitting in Orange County. If damage is done to the slab, emptying may be necessary.
Under-Slab Tunneling
Tunneling can recover the most expensive flooring. If you don’t want to deal with the mess, you can stay at home while the workers do their work.
prevent slab leaks under houses, technicians dig tunnels beneath them. These tunnels are then filled with soil after the completion of repairs.
The problem of a slab leak is a very serious issue that needs experts as soon as possible. So, when you suspect that there might be a slab leak, you should call our water leak detection experts at 949-541-6940. With their extensive experience, experts detect and fix all types of leaks at an affordable price. Apart from that, all the professionals with whom we work are highly experienced, qualified, skilled, and trained in their job so that their esteemed customers will not disappoint.
