How To Tell If You Have A Water Leak Underground

If it has your plumbing is leaking somewhere.

How to tell if you have a water leak underground. 3 mark the rim of the gauge where the needle is pointing if there are several dials mark the one that indicates 1 cubic foot increments. It s usually located at the home s front corner. Once you ve spotted it shut off the valve by turning the gate valve or the lever handle clockwise. To check for a toilet leak add food colouring inside the tank and wait for a few minutes.

Thankfully you don t have to be a professional plumber to confirm if you have a water leak underground. To check for faucet leaks turn the faucet off and listen closely near the water pipe. Next watch the meter and see if it begins to change. Turn off your home s shut off valve.

Secondly most underground leak start as small trickles not as major breaks. If you see a massive price spike from one month to the next or if your bill increases each month despite your water usage staying the same you may be dealing with a leaky pipe. To determine if the water leak is in the house or outdoors only for homes with meters located at the street turn off the shut off valve on your home s main water supply pipe. In most cases the first indication that your underground pipes are leaking will come from your water or sewer bill.

Use a common shovel or spade to dig several test holes five to seven feet in ground depth. How to read an analog water meter. If you have any thought that the leak is from a drain line trust a professional to do a dye test. If there s a running water sound it could be a leak.

If either of these are moving there is water moving through the meter and the leak is in your service line. Here are the steps you can take to detect signs of a water leak. One of the best ways to tell if you have a leak in some part of your plumbing is to check the water meter. To do this you ll first have to turn off all the water in your home.

The first point is that not all underground leaks are from your water supply line. The shut off valve is the operable part of the service line that comes off the ground. If the color reaches the bowl then you have a toilet leak. If no water is going through the meter the leak is somewhere else.

How you read the meter depends on the type of meter you have. Watch out for a major water bill spike. The best way we have found to find a water leak underground. Look at the main dial hand and the low flow indicator usually a triangle or star that spins.

Keep the test holes spaced at least four feet apart to help you determine if underground water may be present in one area and not another. If water is present underground it will begin to seep into the hole as you dig close to the water level. 4 leave the water shut off for 30 minutes and then see if the needle has moved from the mark.