:confused:
Hi! And Help!

Just discovered a water leak on our kitchen which had developed overnight (no appliances on). Checked under the sink/dishwasher/floor area-- all connections dry-- no leaks in sink-- The water is collecting on the tile floor in a low spot from under a shelf unit near the dishwasher. Checked outside and found the area near the foundation wet. Thought-- water leak in slab! Oh No! But then determined that the water was seeping out (at a pretty good rate) between the mortar at the base of the brick wall and the slab, not oozing from the slab itself. It looks like leak is on top of slab? If so, from where? Could pipes be leaking from behind the wall where they enter under the sink and collecting on top of the slab?

We live in the country and have a well, so I turned off water to the house at the source and water leak stopped. Looks like our well water enters our home through a pipe out of the ground into the wall at back of our washing machine (which is also in the kitchen). Floor around rest of the kitchen is dry, including behind washing machine.

Plumbing is not my thing and the hubby had to work today and can't help. Any suggestions?

Yes, it could be leaking waterline after it exits slab. You will probably have cut a port hole in the wall to find the leak. If you can, cut it from the inside of the room.

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Originally Posted by Milo Dolezal

Yes, it could be leaking waterline after it exits slab. You will probably have cut a port hole in the wall to find the leak. If you can, cut it from the inside of the room.

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Hi, Milo,

Thanks-- am looking into the cutting into the wall thing. Will have to move dishwasher out of the way and see if we can trace the leak to the pipes next to it. Turned the water back on to see if anything changed, but still leaks under shelf. I can see the water bead along the back of the wall and edge of the slab under the sheet tile floor, so it must be seeking the lowest point on the floor and rolling towards that point. Must be a heck of a leak.

Any other ideas, I'd appreciate it! Take care and thanks again.

Before you cut into the wall make use it is not leaking from any appliance or icemaker line, or filter etc. Also if you have Reverse Osmosis system, some people drain it to the outside with 1/4" tub. That tube leaks all the time.

Question: do you have wall mounted kitchen faucet ?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Milo Dolezal

Before you cut into the wall make use it is not leaking from any appliance or icemaker line, or filter etc. Also if you have Reverse Osmosis system, some people drain it to the outside with 1/4" tub. That tube leaks all the time.

Question: do you have wall mounted kitchen faucet ?

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Hi, Milo,

Thanks for your continued help. Have already checked appliances. No leaks and the ice maker line is not hooked to refrigerator (nor has it ever been active or used). Am running the dishwasher right now to see if it makes the problem worse (and to get the dirty dishes in it clean before we take it out! ;-) Water seems to leak at the same rate whether sink or dishwasher is used, or any other water usage in house. So far, have collected about a gallon or two of mop water this AM. Am turning water off at the well between usage to minimize mopping it up every few minutes.

Kitchen faucet itself is mounted on top of sink-- lines come underneath sink from wall, which is covered in wood paneling. Took out all cleaning supplies stored in cabinet under sink and vacuumed to look for wet areas under sink. Nothing obvious. Assume paneling on wall under sink is covering insulation, framework and then brick outside wall. Does not appear to be leaking anywhere else along the outside wall except right under sink/dishwasher area.

Thanks for your suggestions-- really appreciate it! :)

Ok, if you have a continuous leak - than you have pressure leak (from water pipes ). Remove paneling and you should see right away where it is. Come back to let me know what you've found out...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Milo Dolezal

Ok, if you have a continuous leak - than you have pressure leak (from water pipes ). Remove paneling and you should see right away where it is. Come back to let me know what you've found out...

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Thanks, Milo-- will do. 'preciate your time and help!

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Originally Posted by wephaus

Thanks, Milo-- will do. 'preciate your time and help!

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Hi, Milo,

Found it. There is a crack in the T fitting that feeds both the cold water line in kitchen and outside hose faucet. Upon removing the panelling, we found it "spraying" water at about 37 psi on the wall, insulation and flooring. Has been leaking slowly for a while, as there is green patina all over pipes below T. Will obviously replace fitting and insulation after drying out the leak. House was built in 1980 with inferior copper pipes and well water is highly acid (ph 6.3). We replaced a similar T fitting in the pipes coming out of the slab near the hot water heater last year (flooded the hall floors).

Should just replace all the pipes with an above attic pvc pipe solution, but don't have the $$. Have you ever heard about this "epoxy lining solution" to line your pipes with food grade epoxy coating? Is is expensive? What's your opinion? We may be chasing leaks like this for years unless we find a solution.

Anyway, you were right on the money. Thanks for the advice. We're going to Lowe's in the morning for repair materials.

Take care and God Bless--

I don't believe in the lining. If your problems continue in the future, start replacing and/or by-passing branch after branch with PEX. It is fast, clean, and not expensive way of repiping your house. No soldering necessary. You can do it yourself.

I am glad you located the leak. Replace the T. Leave the wall open for few days so interior of the wall will completely dry before you cover up. I would suggest that you aim fan at it - but do not add heat. Heat promotes mold growth.

Glad to be of help ! Stop by if you need help in the future. Milo

Hello, I was reading this thread because we had a pipe running like a faucet inside the wall of a downstairs bedroom. We got the pipe fixed, but the insulation is wet inside the wall. The plumber had to cut a hole in the wall about 2 ft by 3 ft to fix the pipe. The wet insulation is below and to the sides of the hole (the hole is about five feet up from the floor). Do we just leave the hole open until the insulation is dry, as you suggested above, or is the hole too small and high to effectively allow air circulation? I don't want to end up with a mold problem! Thanks, Mary

Call your insherence. Or your house will be like hat forever.