Australian rock artists Paul Kelly & The Messengers once sang “From Little Things Big Things Grow.” How true are these words and how relevant are they, in varied contexts! The Australian artists sang in protest while the same words may be uttered by an experienced plumber as he reflects on the cause of a puddle of water near a drain inside a customer’s house or a pipe that is dripping constantly. This plumbing professional has probably realized that the householder had been neglecting tiny cracks and leaks for a long time and so things have come to such a passé.  

Leaks and cracks in pipes and drains often tend to be ignored by a householder, and in most instances, these blow up into worrying proportions and provide enough cause for concern to the householder. Herein stems the necessity of professional leak detection services offered by a professional plumbing company. These companies use varied state-of-art leak detection equipment to spot leaks in even the most hard-to-discern spots in the plumbing fixtures. Here is a rundown of the various pieces of equipment and methodologies employed in the leak detection process: 

1. Line Locator and Video Camera for Sewers: A leak in the sewer system may sprout for a number of reasons—roots of trees and plants that have found their way into the pipes, an improperly installed sewer and drainage system, and/or bits of earth that have collapsed into the pipes. But in most instances, the cause is not readily discernible and a plumber has to press in the services of a line locator and a sewer video camera to determine the cause.

2. Thermal Imaging: This is a state-of-the-art method and surprisingly, there are a large number of individuals, not related to the plumbing field, who are aware of how this works. This is courtesy TV shows like CSI: Miami; but this method also finds use in common household instances of plumbing whence leaks need to be detected. This method rests on the fact that hot and cold water usually have temperatures different than the surrounding air and thus lets the plumber literally peer through solid walls to look for water leaks and their sources.

3. Smoke Test: This is a commonly used leak detection method used for sewer lines. The plumber injects copious amounts of special-effects smoke, albeit harmless, into the sewer lines and then tries to locate the source of the leak by looking for places where the smoke spills out from the lines.

When you suspect a leak, call in for such professional and state-of-the-art services of leak detection. Fort Lauderdale residents will recommend that you rely on the services of only reputable agencies.