Commercial leak detection in Sussex, Surrey & London
On a commercial site the water loss is rarely the biggest number. Closed floors, displaced tenants, spoiled stock and a service charge dispute cost far more than the pipe ever will, and every day the investigation drags on adds to it.
We work to that reality: out of hours and overnight surveys so trading is not interrupted, RAMS and site inductions handled in advance, and documentation written for a managing agent or facilities team rather than a homeowner. A leak of one cubic metre a day is a meaningful operating cost on its own before any damage is counted.
Our approach
How we find commercial leaks
These are the methods we would normally work through on this kind of job, in this order, stopping as soon as the evidence agrees on one point.
- 1
Acoustic leak correlation
A pressurised leak makes a continuous noise that travels along the pipe wall. Sensors placed either side of a suspected run measure the tiny difference in arrival time between them, and the correlator converts that into a distance. On a mains supply pipe this routinely gets us to within a foot of the fault.
- 2
Thermal imaging camera survey
Water moving where it should not changes the temperature of everything it touches. A thermal camera renders those differences as an image, so a leak under a solid floor shows up as a shape long before it shows up as a stain. It is completely passive: nothing is drilled, lifted or cut to take the reading.
- 3
Pressure and flow testing
We cap a section of pipework, raise it to a controlled test pressure and watch the gauge. A circuit that holds is eliminated; a circuit that drops is quantified. Repeating this system by system narrows a whole-house problem down to a single run, and gives a hard number for the report rather than an opinion.
- 4
CCTV drainage survey
Where waste water is escaping rather than supply water, the fault is usually a cracked, displaced or root-invaded drain. The camera carries a sonde so we can mark the position of the defect on the surface above, and the footage doubles as evidence for an insurer or a neighbour dispute.
- 5
Roof integrity and voltage testing
A single pinhole in a felt, EPDM or GRP roof can flood a ceiling while the roof looks perfect from above. Electronic testing energises the membrane and locates the exact point where current, and therefore water, is getting through, so the repair is a patch rather than a re-roof.
- 6
Tracer gas testing
Hydrogen is the smallest molecule there is, so it finds its way out of a crack far too small to see and rises straight up through concrete, screed and soil. We sweep the surface with a sensitive detector and the reading spikes directly over the breach. The gas mix is non-toxic, non-flammable at the concentration used, and leaves nothing behind.
What happens
Trace, access, repair, prove
The same four stages on every job, whether it is a weeping joint or a mains supply pipe under a driveway.
- 1
Trace
Non-invasive survey of the whole affected area. We rule systems out as well as in, because knowing what is not leaking is half the evidence.
- 2
Access
One opening, in the right place, as small as the job allows. Usually a borescope hole first, and a larger opening only if the repair needs it.
- 3
Repair
The fault fixed on the same visit wherever it can be, guaranteed for 12 months. Anything larger is quoted at a fixed price before we start.
- 4
Prove
The circuit re-pressurised and held, moisture readings taken again, and the whole job written up with dated photographs and calibrated readings.
Pricing
Published rates, no call-out fee
Charged by the half hour with a half an hour minimum, and no premium for an emergency. All prices exclude VAT at 20%.
- Weekdays7am – 6pm, Monday to Friday£54.00+ VAT
- Evenings & weekends6pm – 9pm weekdays, plus all day Saturday and Sunday£69.75+ VAT
- Late night9pm – 7am, every day£90.00+ VAT
Questions
Commercial leak detection: your questions
Can you work outside trading hours?
Yes, and for retail and hospitality we usually recommend it. Evening and overnight rates are published, and there is no separate premium for arranging it that way.
Do you carry the paperwork our facilities team will ask for?
Yes. Public liability cover, method statements and risk assessments are issued before attendance, and our engineers hold current site cards.
Can you help settle a dispute between leaseholders?
That is one of the more common reasons we are called to managed blocks. An independent report identifying which demise the failure sits in is normally what unlocks it, because it removes the argument about cause.
Related services
- Trace and access reports for insurance claimsThe evidence pack your insurer needs: what leaked, where, how it was proved, and what it will cost to put right.
- Underground water leak detectionMains supply pipe leaks under drives, gardens and roads, located to within a foot before anyone lifts a spade.
- Drain and sewer leak detectionCCTV surveys of foul and surface water drains, with the defect located and marked on the surface above.
Commercial leak detection near you
We cover 74 towns, cities and boroughs across Sussex, Surrey and London.
Sussex
Need commercial leak detection?
Call 01273 123 5050 for free advice, or book a survey online. No call-out fee, and we will tell you honestly if you do not need us.