The Common Causes of Slab Leaks

While different homes at different times can experience pipe or water line leaks at one time or another, one of the most frustrating leaks to deal with is a slab leak.

Slab leaks are when water lines that are running through a concrete floor or foundation are leaking water at a point underneath that concrete.

Often signs that you have a slab leak are things such as higher water bills, sounds of water running when your sinks are off, water on your floor that you can’t seem to figure out where it’s coming from, or wet base boards.

What Causes Slab Leaks?

Different causes have been attributed to slab leaks, and while it has often been thought that slab leaks have been caused by a faulty installation in the concrete, or possible expansion or contraction by the concrete that damaged the pipe, more often than not the leak is caused from internal corrosion.

Sometimes decontaminants that are put in the water supply have contributed to the corrosion of copper pipes, one of the most commonly installed pipes. Some homeowners as a result are having non-metallic PEX pipes installed instead of the traditional copper pipes in order to avoid future slab leaks.

How Are Slab Leaks Detected?

There are different methods with different tools for detecting slab leaks. Plumbers can sometimes tell where a leak is coming from merely from observation or where a source of a leak is coming from in relation to water lines.

Electronic sound detection devices can also be used to detect leak sounds coming out of the slab. And in some cases, scanners or line tracing equipment can be used to pinpoint the spot of a leak. Once the line with the leak is detected, plumbers will isolate it for repair or replacement.

How Long Does A Repair Take?

How long repairing slab leak takes depends on which repair method is used. If the slabs are pried up to fix the pipes, the process could be expensive and take a long time.

If pipes are rerouted through your walls and ceiling, the process will be quicker, but if you’re dealing with long lines, this may be the wrong method to use.

The best recommended way to repair the pipes that takes the shortest amount of time, and with minimal invasion, is an epoxy repair, in which an epoxy is poured through your pipes that seals off the leaks yet does not jam the pipes.

This repair is safe and won’t contaminate drinking water, it’s cheap, and is fully tested to make sure your water is running unhindered through the pipes.

Are you seeing signs of a slab leak in your San Mateo home? No time to waste here, Call James Caccia Plumbing Inc. at (650) 442-1470 to see what is causing that slab leak.