Underfloor heating leak detection in Sussex, Surrey & London
Underfloor heating is the worst possible place to have a leak and the best possible case for proper detection. The pipework is buried in screed under a finished floor, the loops are rarely where the drawings say they are, and cutting exploratory holes is both expensive and likely to create a second leak.
We start by mapping the actual loop layout with thermal imaging while the system is running, which gives us the pipe routes as a picture. Then we pressure test the manifold circuit by circuit to identify which loop has failed, and use tracer gas to bring the location down to a single point. The result is one small opening rather than a ruined floor.
Our approach
How we find underfloor heating 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
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.
- 2
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.
- 3
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.
- 4
Pipe and cable tracing
Knowing where a pipe actually runs, as opposed to where the drawings say it runs, prevents the two most expensive mistakes on any leak job: digging in the wrong place, and putting a spade through a live service. We mark the route on the surface and record the depth.
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
Underfloor heating leak detection: your questions
Will you have to dig up my whole floor?
No. That is exactly what the survey exists to prevent. We isolate the failed loop at the manifold and locate the fault along it, so the opening is normally a few tiles or a small patch of screed.
Can underfloor heating pipes actually be repaired?
Yes. A pipe is cut back to sound material and joined with a proper underfloor-rated coupling, then pressure tested before the screed goes back. A full loop replacement is only needed where a pipe has failed in several places.
What causes underfloor heating pipes to fail?
Most failures are mechanical rather than age: a screw or nail driven through the screed, a pipe damaged during the original pour, or a fitting that was never properly made. Corrosion is unusual in a properly inhibited system.
Related services
- Central heating leak detectionIf your boiler keeps losing pressure and you are topping it up every few days, there is a leak in the system. We find it.
- Pipe location and mappingMapping where pipes and services actually run, and how deep, before anyone excavates or drills.
- Leak repairFind and fix in one visit wherever possible, with the repair pressure tested and proved before we leave.
Underfloor heating leak detection near you
We cover 74 towns, cities and boroughs across Sussex, Surrey and London.
Sussex
Need underfloor heating 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.