There are many different types of leaks that can affect a home’s plumbing system. One of the most difficult to deal with is the slab leak, which is defined as any leak in the hot or cold water lines running through the concrete foundation of a house. Slab leaks can happen for a variety of reasons: a shift in the land putting pressure on the pipes, chemicals inside the water creating corrosion, and abrasion of the pipe against the concrete around it.

Whatever the reason for a slab leak, it needs immediate attention as soon as the symptoms show up. Watch for cracks in the basement, a rise in water bills, erratic behavior from the water heater (80% of slab leaks occur in the hot water lines), and the development of mold and mildew in the basement.

Attention for a slab leak must come from professional plumbers only! Here are some of the reasons to always trust slab leak repair work to licensed and experienced plumbers:

Leak detection

One of the trickiest parts of fixing any leak, not only slab leaks, is finding the location of the leak in the first place. This is even trickier for a slab leak, which is buried down under several layers of concrete. To locate the leak so the plumbers know where to work requires using advanced equipment: ground microphones, acoustic listening discs, thermal scanners, and video pipe cameras. And it’s not enough just to have them; plumbers require special training to use these devices correctly.

Accessing the pipe

This is where it’s easiest to understand why professionals are necessary for slab leak repairs. How do you actually reach the leaking pipe to repair it if it’s under concrete? In some cases, plumbers don’t actually need to dig down to the pipe; they can use lateral techniques to create a bypass around the leaking pipe to cut it off. At other times, they’ll have to take longer route of using a jackhammer. Clearly, you don’t want to try these jobs yourself.

Correct pipe replacement

In most situations, the way to repair a leaking pipe is to cut out the leaking section and put in a replacement. This again requires the right type of piping and knowledge of the best materials for the job.

Speed and Accuracy

Even if you did have all the equipment necessary to do leak detection yourself, how long would the job take to complete? “Almost forever” is a good answer. With professional plumbers, the job may take only a few hours—and you won’t have any more worries after that, because the job will be done right.

You have already come to the right place if you need a professional plumber in Durham, NC to take care of a possible slab leak in your home’s foundation. We’ll first handle the water detection service necessary to see if you indeed have a slab leak. No matter where we locate the leak, you can trust us to have it fixed fast with minimal disruption to the house.

Bud Matthews Services is here for all your home service needs in Durham and the surrounding areas.