Finding a water leak

[winchman]

Elderly Inlaws can hear a water leak in the kitchen pipes. Three of us had been all over the house and nothing is leaking.
They can still hear it, house is on a common main of 4 houses so United Utilities won't investigate like they would if on a single supply
So any top tips to find it?

 

[Bornfree]

Does the noise stop when the stopcock is shut?

 

[winchman]

Does the noise stop when the stopcock is shut?

I think so.
The house has two stop cocks which is confusing, its one thing I am going to investigate again tomorrow

 

[voipio]

Can you hear it? Or might it be that tinnitus be getting the better of them?

If the main is shared with three other properties, someone else might be using the water.

If there's a leak in the street, there might be some giveaway signs - extra green grass, or a damp patch.

If the leak is indoors, a damp patch, or signs of dampness, might be a pointer.

 

[winchman]

Can you hear it? Or might tinnitus be getting the better of them?

If the main is shared with three other properties, someone else might be using the water.

If there's a leak in the street, there might be some giveaway signs - extra green grass, or a damp patch.

Everyone can hear it, no evidence with any other properties on the main?

 

[Eric the chicken]

Now, stop me if this sounds daft. I once spent a day chasing a drip that I could hear but not find, turned out to be a warning bleep from a smoke alarm to warn that the battery needed changing.

 

[brightspark]

it may be outside before the stop tap if you can hear it.we had a leak outside and it stopped when we renewed the pipe

 

[weldingnovice]

It could be in an adjacent property and you can hear it. Sound travels better through water than air.

 

[gaz1]

first point of call aim for the toilet tank its usually that that starts to over fill first and you can hear it in the kitchen the same can be said when your in the bathroom

also the same if you have any tanks fed by the mains and they start over flowing through the overflow pipe

if neither of them are leaking then its down to trace the pipes internally if the sound stops when you turn off the stop tap

if the sound still happens when your stop tap is turned off then the leak is external

if you have 2 stop taps only turn 1 on a time and search shut off that one and turn the other on and trace with that one

 

[dobbslc]

I came home from the pub one night and thought I could hear running water so checked all the house taps and overflows etc and everything was fine. I put it down to 4 pints of Old Shagnasty and went to bed but I could still hear it in the morning so investigated buy turning off the stop cock, I could still hear it, it was to stop cock itself leaking quite badly and the noise was travelling through the pipes.
PITA to fix!

 

[redlig]

Elderly Inlaws can hear a water leak in the kitchen pipes. Three of us had been all over the house and nothing is leaking.
They can still hear it, house is on a common main of 4 houses so United Utilities won't investigate like they would if on a single supply
So any top tips to find it?

Can you hear a dripping type noise or the sound of water ' running ' in the pipes. Had a case at work that drove all the pro's mad but I was lucky to spot the toilet was just very gently leaking into the bowl.

 

[winchman]

Its a water running sound, three of us have checked toilet etc but found nothing?

 

[Bornfree]

Its a water running sound, three of us have checked toilet etc but found nothing?

Is there a cold water tank in the loft?

 

[8ob]

Sounds like it’s a problem pre individual house stop cock in a buried service, with luck it will be a poly or black alk service. Should be able to sound it out with a cat and Genny, locate the tee’s and dig/expose them. You can then squeeze off sections and eliminate without cutting into the service.

Bob

 

[winchman]

Is there a cold water tank in the loft?

no

 

[winchman]

Main supplies 4 houses as far as we can tell, its lead

 

[Trevorleach]

I had one where where the main feed into the house had split under the suspended concrete floor, could not see it only hear it, could even hear the water flowing at the stopcock with everything turned off.
Had to chisel some of the floor out to get just enough pipe up to redo the connector, basically I bodged someone elses bodge, house was being reclaimed by the bank due to some sort of divorce saga.

 

[RonMig]

Our leak was a pin-hole in a relatively new pipe ('95 extension) from the original stopcock ('71) to it's new position.
Could only hear it when everything was turned off.
Leak was a very thin waterjet, almost invisible, squirting up onto the insulation below the floating chipboard (osb?) floor, under the kitchen lino.
Lifting the lino showed the ruined boarding, must have been soaking for a long time...

 

[Nomad]

I was helping a plumber for a few years - one leak was above the kitchen ceiling. We lifted the upstairs boards, area was wet but no leaks from pipes.

They only leaked when the boards were fitted and somebody stood just above the weak joint.

Ir was an easy fix but a pig to find !

 

[8ob]

Main supplies 4 houses as far as we can tell, its lead

Whatever it is you will need to trace the route, once you know where it is you could find the leak with a listening stick.Not to be confused with Catweazles telling bone.


Bob