Plumber can't find waterleak

Kashkai

I have a water leak under the floor in my hallway that I noticed when the laminate floor started to bubble and expand. I took the floor up and sure enough the concrete was wet. I let it dry out for a week and was left with a dark damp patch that I assumed was where the water was surfacing.

I rang three plumbers but they were all reluctant to start digging as they said the leak could be anywhere and not where it was coming to the surface. So I engaged this company who assess the damage, deal with the insurance company, fix the problem and reinstate the floor, touch up paint etc, all supposedly hassle free for me, or so I thought.

However, their plumber missed three appointments, so I missed 3 days off work for nothing. When he eventually turned up (I was in work that day so the wife dealt with him), he didn't dig where I told him to over the phone but traced two other channels where admittedley there are pipes but he found no leak from these pipes. I told him again where I found the damp patch but he said there were no pipes there, despite there being two radiators on a direct line to the hotpress and where I believe their pipes pass under this damp patch. He said he'd leave the other pipes exposed for a few days to see if anything showed up and that he'd return that day with some plywood to cover the channels he dug in the floor. That was two weeks ago and I'm still waiting on the plywood to cover the dangerous trenches he dug in the floor (I've 5 kids who run up and down that hallway to and from their bedrooms and who could trip and hurt themselves). In the meantime, I put down newspaper under some plastic sheeting and relaid the laminate floor again to see if the dampness returned. I took up the floor this morning and the newspaper was damp.

Now the problem is this company say there is no leak which is bs as I saw the wet floor myself. They want to put leak sealant into the heating system to finish the job and get paid by the insurance company despite the fact that they have not found or fixed the leak which I believe is probably a badly fitted tectite fitting going on past experiences with my house's plumbing. If I let them fill in the floor, relay the laminate and the leak subsequently reappears, the insurance company won't pay out for a second repair I'm pretty sure.

Where do I go from here?

antiskeptic

Prosperous Dave wrote: »

I have a water leak under the floor in my hallway that I noticed when the laminate floor started to bubble and expand. I took the floor up and sure enough the concrete was wet. I let it dry out for a week and was left with a dark damp patch that I assumed was where the water was surfacing.

I rang three plumbers but they were all reluctant to start digging as they said the leak could be anywhere and not where it was coming to the surface. So I engaged this company who assess the damage, deal with the insurance company, fix the problem and reinstate the floor, touch up paint etc, all supposedly hassle free for me, or so I thought.

However, their plumber missed three appointments, so I missed 3 days off work for nothing. When he eventually turned up (I was in work that day so the wife dealt with him), he didn't dig where I told him to over the phone but traced two other channels where admittedley there are pipes but he found no leak from these pipes. I told him again where I found the damp patch but he said there were no pipes there, despite there being two radiators on a direct line to the hotpress and where I believe their pipes pass under this damp patch. He said he'd leave the other pipes exposed for a few days to see if anything showed up and that he'd return that day with some plywood to cover the channels he dug in the floor. That was two weeks ago and I'm still waiting on the plywood to cover the dangerous trenches he dug in the floor (I've 5 kids who run up and down that hallway to and from their bedrooms and who could trip and hurt themselves). In the meantime, I put down newspaper under some plastic sheeting and relaid the laminate floor again to see if the dampness returned. I took up the floor this morning and the newspaper was damp.

Now the problem is this company say there is no leak which is bs as I saw the wet floor myself. They want to put leak sealant into the heating system to finish the job and get paid by the insurance company despite the fact that they have not found or fixed the leak which I believe is probably a badly fitted tectite fitting going on past experiences with my house's plumbing. If I let them fill in the floor, relay the laminate and the leak subsequently reappears, the insurance company won't pay out for a second repair I'm pretty sure.

Where do I go from here?

If I were you, I'd contact the company and tell them you're about to pull the plug on them and that if they want to finish the job and be paid, there are some conditions.

1) They find the leak and fix it properly and reinstate all works.

2) They carry out the work in your presence and don't miss appointments.

3) They complete all works within the week

4) They confirm they understand the above terms and agree to accept your proposal before the close of business that day - as well as setting up the next appointment.


Else get yourself another company.

mad m

If you think its a leak from one of the rads, have you noticed a drop in pressure on your heating? Does your filling loop automatically keep things pressurised?

The leak sealant would be the last resort to finding/fixing a leak in my opinion. Sometimes it doesn't work as well.

I have come across leaks like yours and sure enough once you see a spot in concrete the leak will not be far away.

Kashkai

my system keeps itself topped up. The plumber who called relied on the pressure guage in the hotpress to "prove" to himself that there wasn't a leak. Surely there's a more reliable and accurate method of checking for a loss of pressure caused by a leak? IMO the leak is a small one that over time caused the laminate floors to warp and I accept that it'll be hard to find. However I'd bet the house that there definitely is a leak in the area as I've seen a very wet spot of 12ft x 5ft in area when I first took up the floor. I wasn't imagining it

I know the heating hasn't been used much since the temperature rose but I've had it on for a few hours morning and night and I'm sure this has caused the newspaper I laid under the laminate to get damp. Isn't this proof enough???

This is driving me mental btw.

slavetothegrind

Firstly get rid of the autofill valve on your system. the fill loop should be isolated from the system except when actually filling.

Then you can prove the leak as the pressure will drop on the gauge.

If the system is leaking from anywhere you are topping up constantly without knowing. This oxygen rich water will rot your rads.

I would also let the insurance company know of the problem you're having with this company if it is they who will be paying them.

Kashkai

That's the way this crowd operates, ie they do the work and the insurance company pay them. I'm concerned that if I raise this problem with the insurance company, they'll refuse to pay out eventually as insurance companies always look for ways not to pay out IMO (although as this us my first ever claim, I'm just going by what I've heard from others).

This company is now putting me under pressure to finalise the works as they say there isn't a leak.

mad m

Dave your well within your rights to get a second opinion....Get one or if you know a plumber ask him..

secman

Jeez Prosp Dave, sorry to hear about your latest saga, i remember your long draw out saga.
Not sure if it will help, but I had a similarish problem, when we tiled downstairs loo I noticed that sand in the area where waste pipes were situated was dampish. I had to concrete over it before tiling was done, as I had to all over rest of house, but everywhere else the sand was bone dry. this bothered me for a while. Anyways during the extremely cold winter early this year I had a major problem with water pressure, whereas my neighbour up land from me had no issues with pressure. I then suspected that I had a mains leak somewhere ! My contractor thankfully came back and started to dig outside, after about 6 holes we were getting nowhere fast. I suggested thta he get a guy from the council with one of the listening devices and sure enough after about 4 hours inching along the line from the the meter out on the road he eventually found the leak. just under the footpath at side of house. Contractor told me it was like watching paint drying ! The guy could hear an oncoming car about 20 seconds before it arrived !
Only thing is I am not sure how sensitive the devices are in relation to a weep rather than a leak. But judging by the size of the patch you saw it might be enough to detect ?

Best of luck, God knows you need a change of luck !

Secman

dunsandin

Hi Dave, sounds like you have a leaking pipe joint or split pipe under the concrete. Most companies dont want the hassle of taking up the floor screed so they look for lazy answers. The leak seal is a load of me whatsit, best case scenario it is temporary, worst case it bungs up more in terms of valves etc than it fixes. If as I guess you are in prosperous, you are just down the road from me, you can pm me and I will look at it for you any evening, we usually drive back from work through prosperous. Not fishing for work, just offering a helping hand and i will give you an irrefutable report on what is wrong(I do that sort of work for a lot of the multi's)-best of all, its free!! (Bill free and B... Sh.. free!) If the insurance company pays out for the wrong job to be done, they can be sniffy about paying again when the real problem finally surfaces later.

slavetothegrind

fair play to ya dunsandin, maybe pm him coz he has this also posted in plumbing and heating and may not check back here!

Kashkai

Cheers everyone, especially dunsandin. Might just take you up on that offer. That company rang me yesterday and I told them that the newspaper I laid down under the plastic sheeting was damp which to me meant there was water coming up through the concrete. His reaction was "Oh". He said he'd have a think about it. Meanwhile I not only have a leak, I now have a dug up floor that is a recipe for one of my kids to trip on and hurt themselves. I must have been a real ba$tard in a previous life the way my luck runs.

dunsandin

Dave, when we dig a floor to repair a burst pipe, it is dug, fixed, filled and set in under 2 hours, if its taking longer, they are extracting the michael. In commercial situations, you cannot dig up a floor and just leave it, they would run me. Fast set flooring compound, and you have a repair done and dusted in hours, not days. Good luck with them!!

tradesman

Dave, Not sure if you are fixed up yet but what you need is someone with a thermal imaging camera. they will be able to source the leak for you. PM me and i will give you details of a close friend of mine who does this work, He also carries out this work for insurance companies