Leaks under a slab or inside a wall, found from damp spots and utility bills, then traced and dried.
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Hidden leak detection finds water escaping inside a wall, under a floor or beneath a slab, where it does not show as a stain at first. In Albuquerque, Albuquerque Water Damage Restoration sends a local technician 24/7 as soon as one is free to take moisture readings, trace the likely path and open the building only where the readings call for it.
The worst water leaks are the ones nobody sees. A supply line inside a wall or a drain under a slab can run for weeks before it shows as a stain, and by then the framing, the subfloor and the insulation around it are soaked. The first sign is often a damp spot on the floor, a soft patch in the drywall or a utility bill that is higher than it should be.
Albuquerque Water Damage Restoration takes hidden leak calls across Bernalillo County. Phones are answered 24/7, and a local technician is sent as soon as one is free. Arrival times are not promised. The call taker asks where the damp spot or the soft area is, when the bill went up and whether the water meter moves when every fixture is off, because those answers show where to start looking.
Finding a hidden leak is a matter of readings and evidence, not guesswork. A technician uses moisture meters and an infrared camera to find the area that is wet, then follows the likely path of the water. The building is opened only where the readings call for it, and the repair of the pipe is done by a plumber.
The wet materials around the leak are dried to the goal set at the start, and materials that have lost their strength are removed. The opening is closed only when the readings show the materials are dry, and the repair of the finish is done by the trade that does it.
The drying is recorded room by room, with the readings for each wet material. The record lists the materials that were removed and the ones that were kept, so the repair can be planned on materials that are proven dry.
A floor or wall that looks finished is not always dry inside. The readings are the way to tell, and they are kept for the repair and for any later question about the damage.
A plumber repairs the pipe or the drain, after the technician has located the leak and exposed it. The technician does not repair plumbing, and the plumber decides the method of repair and the parts needed.
The plumber can see the leak once the opening is made, and the pipe is repaired or replaced at that point. The location of the leak is recorded so the plumber knows which part of the line to check and which fittings to inspect.
Ask the plumber to show you the repaired section before the opening is closed. A repair that is visible before the wall is covered is easier to check than one that is buried.
Do not dig, drill or cut into a wall, floor or slab to look for a leak without first checking for wires and pipes that may be behind it. Do not use a metal probe near an outlet or a wire. If you smell gas, leave the building and call the gas utility, because a leak in a gas line can look like a water problem. Keep children and pets away from openings and from any floor that is soft or cracked.
The homeowner is asked to shut off the fixtures and appliances that use water, and to note whether the water meter still moves. A meter that keeps moving points to a leak that is running somewhere in the building. The reading is written down and given to the technician as a starting point.
The technician uses moisture meters on the surface and inside the materials where the meter can reach, and checks the readings against a dry reference from a sound part of the building. An infrared camera can show temperature differences on a wall or a floor that suggest a wet area, and the camera result is confirmed by a reading.
The wet area is followed back along the framing and the floor toward the likely source. The path tells the technician which pipe or drain is most likely to be leaking and which part of the building must be opened to reach it. The path is written on the sketch so that the opening can be planned.
A small section of drywall, flooring or a cabinet base is opened at the point the readings and the path point to. The opening is made as small as possible, and the pipe or drain is exposed so that a plumber can see the leak. Nothing more is opened than the readings require.
Once the source is confirmed and stopped, the wet materials around it are dried to the goal set at the start, and the readings are recorded. The plumber repairs the pipe or drain, and the opening is closed only after the materials read dry.
A supply line or drain that runs under a concrete slab can leak into the soil and the subfloor without showing on the floor above. The sign is often a warm or damp spot, a rising bill or a crack in the floor covering. The technician checks the readings and the water meter, and the plumber decides how the pipe is reached.
A supply line or a drain inside a wall can soak the drywall and the framing behind a single panel. The wall is opened where the readings are highest, and the leak is located before the wall is closed. The leak is repaired by a plumber, and the cavity is dried from the open section.
A line that runs through a floor framing or a crawl space can leak onto the subfloor and into the room below. The floor is opened at the place the water is found, and the joist space is checked for water that has run along the framing. The repair is planned from the opening, not from a guess at the route.
A fitting or valve that has loosened can leak a small amount for a long time. The water may show only as a damp spot at the base of a wall or in a cabinet. The fitting is found, shut or isolated, and the wet materials around it are dried.
Tell us what's happening and we'll tell you honestly whether it's a quick fix, and what hidden slab and wall leak detection should cost.
Hidden leaks in Albuquerque are often found through the water bill and the water meter, because the water runs out of sight for a long time before it shows in a room. A rise in use with no change in the household is the clue that starts the search.
Homes in Bernalillo County sit on ground that changes from one site to the next, and water that escapes under a slab or into the ground can move a long way before it shows. The technician uses readings across the building rather than a single spot, because the water may appear far from the leak.
A flood or a storm can also reach a slab or a crawl space and hide a leak. Water from outside can mix with a supply leak, and the readings are taken after the storm water has been removed, so the source of the wet readings is not confused with the storm.
A supply line that fails inside a wall is found by the wet drywall, shut off, and the cavity dried.
Ceiling stains and sagging drywall after a roof or supply leak are cut out and dried, not painted over.
Wet carpet, pad and hardwood: what can be dried in place, what must come out, and how the floor is measured.
Air movers and dehumidifiers run until walls, floors and cavities read dry, and each room is logged.
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
The cost of a leak depends on how much water is escaping and how long it runs, so no figure is given here. A bill that rises without a change in use is the sign to look for. The technician can check the meter and advise on whether a leak is the likely cause.
Water under a floor can change the temperature of the surface above it, and a warm or cool patch can be a sign that a pipe is running close to the floor. An infrared camera can show the difference, and a moisture reading confirms it. A patch is not always a leak, so the readings are checked before the floor is opened.
The slab is opened only when the readings and the water path show the leak is under it and cannot be reached any other way. The plumber decides how the pipe is repaired, and any opening is closed and finished by the trade that does that work.
Watching the meter can confirm a leak, and it is a useful first step. It does not show where the leak is or what has been damaged, and the wet materials are the job of the technician. Call once the meter confirms the water is running with every fixture off.
That depends on the policy and the cause of the leak, and this site cannot say what a policy covers. Many policies treat a leak that has run for a long time differently from a sudden failure. Keep the meter readings and the record of the opening and ask the insurer.
The drying runs until the materials read at the goal set at the start. A leak that was found quickly and in one wall may take days. A leak under a slab or through several rooms can take longer, and the technician records the readings so the progress is visible.