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Leak Detection in South Florida
Hidden leaks in walls, slabs, ceilings, and yards. Found without unnecessary demolition.
Total’s licensed plumbers find hidden leaks without ripping your house apart
Total Repair Pros has located hidden leaks in South Florida homes since 1970. Slab leaks, in-wall pinhole leaks, ceiling drips, main water line breaks, irrigation lines, pool equipment lines. We use acoustic and thermal tools to pinpoint the leak first, then repair through the smallest possible opening. No shotgun demolition. No guessing your way to the leak by opening one wall after another. Written, flat-rate quote before any work starts.
When You Have a Hidden Leak
Hidden leaks rarely announce themselves. They show up as a water bill you can’t explain, a warm spot on the floor, a musty smell that won’t go away, or a green patch of grass in the middle of a dry yard. Below is what to look for, where hidden leaks tend to happen in South Florida homes, and why catching one early costs a lot less than catching one late.
Signs of a Hidden Leak
Any single one of these is worth a diagnostic call. Two or more together usually confirms it.
Same household, same habits, sudden 30-100% jump. Most common early sign. Compare month-over-month billing.
Water hitting the inside of a wall or dripping under a slab. Faint but persistent. Best heard in quiet rooms at night.
Classic slab-leak sign on the hot water line. The floor is warm even hours after any hot water was used.
Water staining, bubbling paint, softened drywall. Location tells us a lot about the source.
Prolonged wetness inside walls or under floors. Even without visible damage, the smell is data.
Especially at hot fixtures. A leak upstream of the fixture reduces the pressure that reaches it.
Main water line leak or irrigation line leak. Often a strip pattern following the pipe path.
Shut every fixture and appliance, watch the meter. If it moves, water is leaving the system somewhere.
Prolonged moisture can shift a slab or a wall enough to crack. Not the first sign, but a serious one.
Where Hidden Leaks Happen
The location changes the tool and the repair. Here’s what we see most often in South Florida homes.
Copper or PEX supply lines running under the concrete floor. Common in South Florida homes built pre-1990. Located acoustically, repaired through targeted access or with a bypass reroute.
Pinhole leaks in copper (very common in older Florida homes), pipe joints, or supply lines behind cabinets. Found with acoustic and thermal tools.
Upstairs bathroom fixtures, condensate lines, or a leak elsewhere that traveled along framing. Location up top rarely matches the leak source below.
Between the street and the house. Often shows as wet grass, water pooling in the yard, or a jumping water bill without any visible indoor leak.
Pressurized lines that fail from age, root damage, or a strike. Pressure testing isolates the affected loop.
Bathroom vanities, kitchen sink supply, dishwasher lines. Slow drips that soak the cabinet base for months before showing.
Not always a “hidden” leak, but the subfloor damage often is. If a toilet has ever wobbled, the wax ring may have leaked into the subfloor.
Why Finding a Leak Fast Matters
Every day a hidden leak runs, it costs more. Not just in water. In what the water is quietly doing to the house.
- Water bill: a small pinhole leak can waste 90+ gallons per day. Over a month that’s real money. And Florida water isn’t getting cheaper.
- Structural damage: prolonged wetness under a slab or inside a wall softens drywall, warps subfloor, and can shift framing.
- Airborne spores and moisture damage: chronically damp interior surfaces create conditions for biological growth. Manufacturer air-purifier claims are one thing; the plumbing fix that removes the moisture source is the actual solution.
- Insurance: most South Florida homeowner policies cover sudden pipe failures. Slow leaks that ran for months and caused gradual damage are often denied. The sooner it’s found and documented, the better the claim.
- Repair scope: a leak found today might be a single-fixture supply line fix. The same leak in six months might involve subfloor replacement, drywall demolition, and paint.
How We Find Leaks
Every leak call starts with a diagnosis, not a shovel. We choose the right tool based on where you suspect the leak is, what the symptoms are, and what kind of pipe is involved. Here are the four methods we use most often.
Thermal Imaging Leak Detection
Best for: hot water leaks, moisture behind walls or under floors, ceiling leaks.
An infrared camera visualizes temperature differences that the human eye can’t see. Hot water leaks show up as warm streaks. Moisture behind a wall shows up as a temperature difference against surrounding drywall. Fast, non-invasive, and gives us a picture to show you on site.
Acoustic Leak Detection
Best for: pressurized water lines, slab leaks, in-wall pipe leaks.
A sensitive electronic listening device picks up the sound of water escaping under pressure through even a very small opening. Our workhorse tool for finding slab leaks and in-wall copper pinholes without opening a single square foot of drywall or concrete.
Pressure Testing for Leaks
Best for: irrigation lines, whole-system pressure loss, pool equipment lines.
We isolate a section of the system and hold it under pressure with a gauge. If pressure drops, water is escaping. How fast it drops tells us how big the leak is. Repeating on different sections narrows the location without excavation.
Video Camera Leak Inspection
Best for: drain and sewer lines, confirming leak location before opening a wall or floor.
A waterproof camera on a flexible push-rod travels through the drain, sewer lateral, or an accessible supply-line opening. We see the pipe interior directly. The exact spot of a break, joint failure, or root intrusion. Confirms what acoustic or thermal detected.
Leak detection is covered under a Total Home Service Warranty
Florida’s only local, in-house home service plan. Plumbing repairs (including leak detection) covered under one flat annual price. No trip charges, no co-pays, unlimited service calls, and the same in-house Total plumbers you’d see on every other call.
Starting at $375/yr for the AC + Plumbing plan · monthly plans also available
See Home Service Warranty pricing →Family-owned South Florida since 1970. Full home coverage (plus electrical + appliances) available on the higher tier.
Leak Detection FAQ
How much does leak detection cost?
Every leak call is different, so pricing is quoted on site rather than published up front. The cost depends on the location (in-wall pinhole vs slab vs main line vs irrigation), which detection method the situation calls for, how accessible the area is, and whether the repair happens on the same visit. Call (954) 900-6767 for an honest range for your specific situation, or schedule a diagnostic visit and we’ll give you a written, flat-rate quote before any work starts.
How do you find a slab leak?
Acoustic listening equipment is the primary tool. A sensitive electronic device picks up the sound of pressurized water escaping through even a very small opening under the concrete. Trained ear plus calibrated equipment lets us pinpoint the leak location within a small area, so we can access and repair through a targeted opening instead of jackhammering blind.
Do I need leak detection, or should I just fix the visible leak?
If you can see the leak clearly (fixture drip, visible pipe leak), you probably don’t need detection. Just the repair. Detection is for the leaks you can’t see: slab leaks, in-wall pinholes, ceiling drips whose source is somewhere else, and unexplained water bill spikes. If a leak is running somewhere you can’t find it, opening walls at random costs more than diagnostic detection.
How much water can a small leak waste?
A hidden pinhole leak in a pressurized supply line can waste 90+ gallons per day. A running toilet flapper can waste 200+ gallons per day. A main water line leak can be much more. Any of these will show up on your water bill within a month.
Will insurance cover leak repair?
Most South Florida homeowner policies cover sudden pipe failures and the resulting water damage. Slow leaks that ran for months, causing gradual damage, are often denied. The sooner we find it and document it, the stronger the claim. We can provide diagnostic reports and photos for insurance submission.
How long does leak detection take?
Most leak detection visits take 60-120 minutes. Slab leak acoustic can take longer if the area is large or the leak is intermittent. Complex whole-house pressure isolation with multiple methods can be a half-day. We give you a realistic time window when you call.
Do you repair the leak too, or just find it?
Both. Detect and repair happen with the same crew on the same visit whenever the scope allows. For larger repairs (slab access with concrete cut and patch, reroutes, main line excavation) we may schedule the repair for a return visit once we quote the scope. Same company, same warranty.
What’s the difference between acoustic and thermal imaging?
Acoustic listens for the sound of water escaping under pressure. Best for pinpointing the exact spot of a slab or in-wall leak on a pressurized supply line. Thermal sees temperature differences. Best for hot water leaks (they glow on thermal) and mapping moisture behind walls or ceilings. Different tools for different situations. We often use both on the same job.
Will you damage my walls or floors to find the leak?
Our whole approach is designed to avoid that. Acoustic and thermal tools locate the leak without any demolition. Only when we’ve pinpointed the location do we open anything, and then only the smallest opening needed to access and repair the leak. No shotgun demolition.
How fast can you get out to check a suspected leak?
Same-day for most leak calls across Miami-Dade, Broward, and South Palm Beach. If you have visible water or a suspected slab leak, we prioritize the dispatch. Call (954) 900-6767 and we’ll give you an honest window.
Areas We Service
Same-day leak detection across Miami-Dade, Broward, and South Palm Beach County. Click any city page to learn more about our services within the area.
Miami-Dade County
- Aventura
- Bal Harbour
- Coral Gables
- Cutler Bay
- Doral
- Hialeah
- Homestead
- Kendall
- Miami
- Miami Beach
- Miami Gardens
- Miami Lakes
- North Miami
- North Miami Beach
- Pinecrest
- Sunny Isles Beach
- Surfside
Broward County
- Coconut Creek
- Cooper City
- Coral Springs
- Davie
- Deerfield Beach
- Fort Lauderdale
- Hallandale Beach
- Hollywood
- Margate
- Miramar
- Pembroke Pines
- Plantation
- Pompano Beach
- Sunrise
- Tamarac
- Weston