For homeowners
Residential pool leak detection
If your pool keeps dropping and you have to top it off every few days, something is leaking. We find exactly where, without draining the pool or digging up your yard to go looking.
- No draining the pool
- No digging until we know where
- Pool, spa and equipment pad
Is it a leak or just evaporation?
Every pool loses some water to the sun and wind. In Southern California that is usually around a quarter of an inch a day, and more on hot, dry, windy days. If you are losing noticeably more than that, or you are refilling more than once a week, a leak is the likely cause.
A leak rarely fixes itself. Left alone, it wastes water, washes out the soil under the deck, and lets untreated water undermine equipment and plaster.
Signs your pool is leaking
- The water level drops more than about a quarter inch a day
- Your auto-fill runs constantly or never seems to shut off
- Your water bill went up and nothing else changed
- Wet or soft spots in the yard, or one patch of grass that is greener than the rest
- Cracks or gaps in the deck, tile line or plaster
- Air bubbles coming out of the returns, or air in the pump basket
- Algae that keeps coming back, or chemicals that will not stay balanced
- The pool loses more water with the pump running, or more with it off
What we check
Leaks hide in more places than most homeowners expect. We test the whole system rather than guessing at the obvious spots.
The pool shell
Cracks in the plaster, the tile line and the bond beam, plus where the shell meets the deck.
Fittings and penetrations
Skimmers, returns, main drains and light niches, which are among the most common leak points.
Underground plumbing
The suction and return lines running between the pool and the equipment, tested one at a time.
The spa
Jets, the spillway, and the plumbing and valves shared with the pool.
The equipment pad
Pump seals, filter, heater, valves and unions, where small drips add up fast.
Auto-fill and water feature lines
Fill lines, waterfalls and other add-ons that can leak or mask a leak.
How we find it without wrecking your yard
We talk through what you have noticed
How fast you are losing water, whether the pump changes it, and when it started. That narrows the search before we unpack anything.
We pressure test the plumbing
Each line is isolated and pressurized so we know which one, if any, is losing water.
We listen for it electronically
Acoustic equipment picks up the sound of water escaping underground or through the shell, so we can pinpoint the spot from above.
We confirm it with dye and an in-water inspection
Dye shows exactly where water is being drawn out of a crack or fitting.
We explain what we found
You get the location of every leak we find and what it will take to fix it, before any repair work starts.
Why pinpointing first saves you money
The expensive way to find a leak is to start digging and hope. Breaking out decking or trenching through landscaping to chase a guess costs far more than the leak itself, and it often misses.
We locate the leak first, then open up only what has to be opened. In many cases the fix is a fitting or a crack that can be repaired with no digging at all.
Residential vs. commercial at a glance
| Residential | Commercial | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | Homeowners with a backyard pool, spa or both | HOAs, apartments, hotels, resorts, gyms, schools, city pools, water parks and splash pads |
| Typical system | One pool, often an attached spa, one equipment pad and a few hundred feet of plumbing | Large or multiple bodies of water, surge and balance tanks, gutter systems, pump rooms and long underground runs |
| What usually prompts the call | The water level keeps dropping, the auto-fill never stops or the water bill jumped | Rising make-up water use, a failed inspection, chemical costs climbing or a manager noticing loss across shifts |
| Scheduling | A single visit at a time that suits you | Planned around your hours, events and swim schedule to keep downtime low |
| What you get | A clear explanation of where the leak is and what it will take to fix | Written findings with photos that managers, boards and insurers can act on |
| Who you deal with | The homeowner | Property managers, facility directors, maintenance staff and boards |
Who it is for
- Residential
- Homeowners with a backyard pool, spa or both
- Commercial
- HOAs, apartments, hotels, resorts, gyms, schools, city pools, water parks and splash pads
Typical system
- Residential
- One pool, often an attached spa, one equipment pad and a few hundred feet of plumbing
- Commercial
- Large or multiple bodies of water, surge and balance tanks, gutter systems, pump rooms and long underground runs
What usually prompts the call
- Residential
- The water level keeps dropping, the auto-fill never stops or the water bill jumped
- Commercial
- Rising make-up water use, a failed inspection, chemical costs climbing or a manager noticing loss across shifts
Scheduling
- Residential
- A single visit at a time that suits you
- Commercial
- Planned around your hours, events and swim schedule to keep downtime low
What you get
- Residential
- A clear explanation of where the leak is and what it will take to fix
- Commercial
- Written findings with photos that managers, boards and insurers can act on
Who you deal with
- Residential
- The homeowner
- Commercial
- Property managers, facility directors, maintenance staff and boards
Frequently asked questions
- Do you have to drain my pool to find the leak?
- No. Pressure testing, electronic listening equipment and dye testing all work with the pool full. Draining a pool can actually damage it, so we avoid it.
- Will you dig up my yard or deck?
- Not to search. We pinpoint the leak first so that any digging is limited to the exact spot that needs repair, and often none is needed at all.
- How long does leak detection take?
- Most residential pools take a few hours. A pool with an attached spa, several water features or more than one leak can take longer.
- Can you fix the leak once you find it?
- Yes. We repair leaks too, from skimmer and fitting leaks to shell cracks and underground plumbing. Many common repairs can be done on the same visit.
- How quickly can you come out?
- Call (442) 944-2017 and we will get you on the schedule as soon as we can. A leaking pool gets more expensive every day it runs.
Losing water? Let’s find out where.
Call us or request a quote. We will ask a few questions about what you are seeing and get you on the schedule.
Serving San Diego, South OC and Southwest Riverside since 2021 · Satisfaction guaranteed