Home/Pool Leak Detection
Pool leak detection in Brackenfell starts by proving the water is leaking and not evaporating, because on a hot, windy day a pool can lose a surprising amount to the air. Once a leak is proven, we test the shell, the fittings and the pipework in turn.
Tell us how fast the level drops. You get the detection price in writing first.
A pool has more places to leak than most people expect. We work through them in order.
A bucket of pool water on the step, marked inside and out, compares evaporation against actual loss over a day.
Skimmer throats, return eyes, lights and the main drain are the most common leak points on a sound shell.
Buried pipework isolated and pressure-tested line by line.
Leaks at the pump, filter and backwash valve that only show while the system runs.
Cracks and failed tiles located by dye testing along the suspected area.
Top-up valves checked for sticking, and for the backflow protection the by-law expects.
An automatic top-up valve is convenient right up until the pool starts leaking. Then it does exactly what it was built to do: keep the level where it should be. The pool never looks low, the pump never runs dry, and the lost water shows up in only one place, which is the monthly bill.
The auto-fill is also a direct connection between the municipal supply and a body of treated water. Section 54(1) of the City of Cape Town’s Water By-law requires an owner to keep approved measures in place to stop anything that could harm the water quality from flowing back into the supply. A top-up line without backflow protection is exactly that kind of connection.
Section 37(2) of the same by-law puts repairing any leak in the installation on the owner. A pool shell or buried return line is not part of the drinking water installation, but the water it loses still comes through your meter and still has to be replaced from the mains.
So the first thing we do on a pool with an auto-fill is switch it off and let the pool show what it is really losing. A bucket test alongside separates evaporation from leakage, and then the fittings, lines and shell are checked in turn until the loss has a location.
Turn the auto-fill off for two days and mark the water line. If the drop is more than a bucket on the step loses over the same time, the pool is leaking.
A leak is proven before any deeper testing is quoted.
Fittings, lines, equipment and shell, cheapest to check first.
Where the leak is and what it needs, on paper.
Auto-fill connections checked against the by-law as part of the job.
The first test and fitting checks are a fixed price. Pressure-testing buried lines is quoted separately if the leak is not found at the fittings. See the plumber prices page.
It varies with sun, wind and cover. That is why a bucket test beside the pool is more reliable than any rule of thumb: it experiences the same conditions.
That points at the return side or the equipment, where the water is under pressure. A bigger drop with everything switched off moves suspicion to the shell and the suction pipework instead.
Yes. Dye testing and pressure testing are done with the pool full.
We repair leaking pipework, fittings and equipment connections. Shell resurfacing is a specialist job and we will say so if that is what it needs.
The Water By-law requires measures that stop anything harmful flowing back into the supply. An auto-fill from the mains into a pool is a connection that needs one.
You can, but a borehole system has its own by-law rules about separation and signage. See plumbing installations.
Possibly. Do the overnight meter test on our leak detection page with the auto-fill off to tell them apart.
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Pool losing water in Brackenfell or nearby? Tell us how fast and we will price the test.
