The supply line from the meter
The buried run between the meter and the house belongs to the property. A leak on it shows up on usage long before it shows up on the surface, and the surface sign can be a long way from the fault.
Water main leaks →Before you sign
Pre-purchase leak inspection in the Phoenix valley
A leak found before close is a negotiation. The same leak found afterwards is a project. The difference is a few days and one instrumented look.
What this is, and what it is not
A home inspection and a leak locate are different jobs
Both are worth having. They answer different questions with different equipment.
A general home inspection is a broad visual survey by design. It covers an enormous amount of ground in one visit and flags what can be seen, operated and reached. That breadth is its value, and it is also why a buried leak can pass through it: water escaping from a line under a slab, under a driveway or under a pool shell does not present anything to see.
A leak locate is the opposite shape. It looks at one system at a time, under pressure, with listening gear, dye, thermal imaging and line tracing, and it answers one question: is this property losing water, and if so, from where. On a house with a pool, that is two separate systems to think about — the plumbing serving the house, and the pool with all its own buried pipework.
Neither replaces the other, and we are not going to tell you an inspector missed something. Locating a leak is a specialist, instrumented job, which is why it is a separate piece of work.
What we look at
The four systems that matter on a sale
Under the slab
Pressurised lines under concrete. Warm spots, damp flooring and a meter that will not settle are the usual signs. A post-tension slab must not be cut without proper assessment, so precision here is the whole job.
Slab leak detection →The pool and spa
Shell, skimmer, light niche, returns and buried plumbing, plus a bucket test result if there is time before close. On a vacant listing the auto-fill has often been hiding a loss for months.
Pool leak detection →Irrigation and drip
Valves, mainlines and drip runs, including flood irrigation gates and laterals where the lot has them. This is where a surprising share of a property’s water goes missing.
Irrigation leaks →On the escrow clock
How this fits a closing timeline
Tell us the date that matters
The inspection deadline, not the closing date. Everything works backwards from that, and we would rather tell you honestly whether it fits than promise a slot we cannot keep.
Get access sorted in one message
Who lets us in, whether the pool equipment can be run, and whether the water can be shut off for a pressure test.
We test rather than eyeball
Pressure testing, acoustic listening, dye tracing, thermal imaging and line tracing, in whatever combination the property calls for.
You get it in writing
What was tested, what was found, where it is, and what it would take to put right. Written plainly enough to forward to anyone in the transaction.
Both sides read the same document
We have no side in the deal. We report what the equipment shows, in the direction it points. If the property turns out not to have a leak, that is the finding and it goes in writing the same way.
Age tells you what to expect
What the housing data says about a listing
The year a Valley house went up is the single most useful thing to know before you look at its plumbing, because build era decides material and material decides how leaks behave. In Arcadia, 67 percent of housing units predate 1980; in the Encanto and Willo area, 75 percent; in Maryvale, 62 percent; in Tempe, 43 percent. Under houses of that vintage the supply is usually copper, with galvanised steel at the older end, and failures tend to happen where a line was bent or where it rubs rather than at an obvious joint.
At the other end of the metro, 89 percent of Buckeye’s housing and 59 percent of Gilbert’s has been built since 2000. That stock is largely PEX and newer copper, which rarely fails along a run and usually fails at a fitting or a manifold. Newer does not mean nothing to find — it means looking in different places.
Housing figures: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2023).
Straight answers
Buyer and seller questions
Is this the same as a home inspection?
No. A home inspection is a broad visual survey of the whole property; a leak locate is a narrow instrumented test of the water systems. Most buyers who order a leak locate have already had, or are already having, a home inspection.
Can you do it in time for my inspection period?
Tell us the deadline and we will give you a straight answer rather than a hopeful one. We do not publish arrival windows, because the honest answer depends on the week.
The listing is vacant and the pool looks fine. Is a bucket test worth it?
On a vacant listing it is especially worth it, because an auto-fill quietly topping up a leaking pool leaves the level looking perfect. If there is time before your deadline, run the bucket test with the auto-fill closed.
What do I get at the end?
A written record of what was tested, what was found, where it is and what putting it right involves. It is written to be forwarded, because in a transaction it always is.
Do you work for the buyer or the seller?
Either, and the document reads the same way regardless. We report what the equipment shows. If the property has no leak, that is the finding.
Do you also do the repair if something is found?
Most leaks we locate we can also repair, and the written locate stands on its own if the work is better done after close.
What gets tested
Water Leak DetectionFinding a hidden water leak anywhere on the property.Slab Leak DetectionA leak in the pressurised line under a concrete slab.Pool & Spa Leak DetectionA pool losing water faster than evaporation explains.Water Main Leak DetectionThe main service line, often under a driveway or front yard.Irrigation & Drip System Leak DetectionWet patches, soggy gravel or a bill that climbed with no change in use.
Tell us what the water is doing
The address, the deadline that matters and who handles access. One line about what the property is doing is plenty.
Tell us your inspection deadline
Send the date and the address, and we will tell you straight what can be tested and whether it fits.
5.0 on Google
What customers in the Phoenix valley have written. The words are theirs, on listings we cannot edit.
“Humberto has been amazing! Prompt, professional, and patient. He has gone above and beyond, taking the time to show me how to operate the water valves and educating me so I can continue to monitor for future leaks. He identified multiple leaks and made thoughtful recommendations.”
“Beto was very professional, thorough and patient in explaining everything he was doing and why. It was an excellent and well worth it experience, and this is saying something for an architect who had a hundred questions!”
“The owner and operator of this company is everything a contractor should be. On time, honest, competent, reachable, comprehensive. Hope to work with him again in the future.”