Acoustic and electronic leak detection — find hidden leaks before they cost you. Whether you’re calling for the first time or you’ve been a client for 20 years, the same team handles the call, the diagnosis, and the work. No tiered “senior vs junior” rates — just qualified, licensed, insured plumbers who do this every day across Northside Brisbane.
Two main tools: acoustic leak detection (a high-sensitivity microphone that hears water escaping under pressure) and tracer gas detection (a safe, non-flammable gas pumped into the line that we sniff out at the surface). Between the two we can usually pinpoint a leak under concrete, behind tiles, or in a wall cavity to within a hand-span before any cutting happens.
Most Brisbane home insurers will cover the cost of leak detection when there’s an active claim — we provide an itemised invoice and a written report so you have the paperwork they’ll ask for. We’ve worked with most of the big insurers and know what their assessors want to see. If you’re unsure, give us a call before you lodge and we can talk you through it.
On a typical residential job we get the leak source to within 100–200mm, which means cutting a hand-sized access hole rather than ripping up a whole bathroom floor. On more complex jobs (concrete slab, multi-storey, embedded heated floors) it might be a bit wider, but we’d rather be a touch wide and right than narrow and wrong — same number of cuts, less chasing.
Yes, but it’s harder — we may need to come back when the leak is actively happening. For pressure-side leaks we can pressurise the line and listen for it; for drainage-side intermittent leaks we’ll often run dye or smoke through the system to see where it appears. Bring photos of any wet spots and timing notes (after a rain? After a hot shower?) — it shortcuts the diagnosis.
Most residential leak detections run 1–3 hours including a written report. Concrete slab leaks under tiles can take longer because of access and the time the tracer gas needs to migrate. Once located, the actual repair is a separate visit unless it’s simple enough to do same-day — we’ll quote the repair right after we’ve found the leak.
If your bill has jumped without a usage change, you’re probably leaking somewhere — most often a slow-running toilet (the silent kind), a hot water relief valve constantly weeping, or a buried pipe leak in the front yard. Read your meter at night before bed and again first thing in the morning — if it’s ticked over with no use, you’ve got a leak. Call us with the number.
Yes — gas leak detection uses a different sensor (a hydrocarbon sniffer) but the same principle. If you can smell gas, isolate at the meter immediately and ventilate. We’re QBCC gas-fit accredited and can trace, repair and re-certify the line so you get your gas back on safely. Don’t try to DIY a gas leak — the legal liability is significant.
