It looks like we have a pipe leak, and are calling plumbers and leak detection people and asking questions (God this sucks). I have heard that epoxy coating of the pipes to resolve a hot water leak between the hot water heater and the kitchen (about 30 feet) is a good workable idea, but someone else practically screamed OH HELL NO. Did I mention it might be a slab leak? :eek:
Any experience with pipe leaks, slab leaks, epoxy or plastic coating, or other related stuff? How about some unbiased info, as I (perhaps unfairly) see plumbers and leak detection people bagging on each other’s methods as a mere money grab? Please help!
What kind of floor do you have? Vinyl, ceramic tile, hardwood or carpet?
I did construction labor working my way through college. I’ve used a small jack hammer to trench out for a sewer pipe in a basement. I only did the labor. The plumber put in the pipe. It’s not that big of a deal. They should put in some fresh stone and then fill with concrete.
Replacing the floor could be an issue. Vinyl is cheap. You might be able to patch ceramic tile if you can find a close match.
Another option might be running a new pipe and building a bulkhead. They could disconnect the one in the slab and leave it.
Also, you might save money by doing the sweaty work yourself. The plumber might let you rent a jack hammer and save money. He can tell you exactly where to trench. The ones for this type of work aren’t the huge ones you see at construction sites.
Hardwood floors in the main rooms, travertine in the guest bath that’s already cracked, we think from the heat of the hot water pipe that runs under the floor.
It looks like it’s a leak in the hot water pipe coming from the water heater in the garage, running towards (we think) the kitchen and other baths. Now we just need to find it. It’s probably quite small.
This sucks. Calling plumbers & leak detection people this morning.
Hope you have gotten some good news along with the bad…
Are they copper pipes in the slab? Could be major trouble, how old is your house, maybe other homes in the area have experienced problems too, if the same builder.
What about soil creep and earth movements, could that crack your pipes/floor?
I’d look into rerunning new water pipes in the attic or in bulkheads along the ceiling. It may be cheaper than trenching out the floor and repairing the tile & hardwood. It depends on the design of your house and where pipes can be run.
I had a hot water pipe spring a pinhole leak on my water heater that I tried to fix with epoxy. It didn’t work. I may not have used enough, but I was quite liberal in the application of goop. I ended up killing the water heater, but it was old and rusty anyway.
I was also having other plumbing issues, and I went through servicemagic.com to find a plumber. I found one that replaced all the drain piping from the kitchen to the main drain (about 15 feet), got the sink itself working, cleaned up and got rid of the refuse all for $400. It was about 2.5 hours of work. It helped I had a basement and willingness to have him cut holes in the basement ceiling.
It’s not that big of a deal. They should put in some fresh stone and then fill with concrete.