Mitzyboy

In the Gandia / Oliva area please
Neighbour has a leak somewhere (his water bills have rocketed to €200 a quarter) but we cant see one anywhere. His insurance company have washed their hands of the situation as they say they cant see a leak!!

pete_l

The traditional way to find water leaks is to listen for them. Try a small funnel connected to a piece of hose. Place the funnel on the ground and put the hose-end to your ear. Keep moving the location until you can hear the sound of water under pressure.

jdr

It`s probable underground plastic pipe with a split in it.
Is the meter spinning while not using water ?
Turn off the stopcock to the house and check again then you will know if it`s after or before the house stopcock.

Casa Santo Estevo

I am sorry I cannot get there to help. But to find a leak that is not appearing on the service and before you all in a plumber try the following. Shut the supply down at the main stoptap/cock. See if the meter keeps turning. And get a good length of metal and place it on the stoptap. Place your ear to the top end and the other end on the tap. Does the meter still count and is there any noise...BTW it ahs to be quite to hear anything...maybe impossible in Spain!
If there is another stoptap inside the building close this. Open the main one and repeat above. If there is any noise then the leak is in that section.
If you do not hear any noise at all you can try the following. Keep everything open and open a tap indoors. Again listen to the water flowing through the pipe at a stoptap. You should hear something then.
If you hear nothing with the internal tap closed then it could be the water meter failing. This happens regularly and some companies, (including in the U.K. say this can never happen).
If you want any more help on line let me know.

PS I have never been a plumber but I did work in the water industry looking for leaks was one of my specialities, but then we had special equipment which helped with the basics I have written about.

Good luck

Casa Santo Estevo

See the above answers were written whilst I was typing...we are suggesting the same thing.

Mitzyboy

I should have elaborated

We have turned off stop cocks at various points and have narrowed it down to a tap 10 mtrs from the house to the bathroom sink. We dug up the patio a week ago where we knew a repair had been done, but it was not there. I am concerned that its actually under the house

The meter spins around when the water is fully on, but if we turn off the tap 10 mtrs from the house then it stops.

jdr

Well that is where your leak is.
Best way to sort it is re-run the pipe, outside and underground between the tap and the pipework in the house

Casa Santo Estevo

Is it a copper pipe, and is it encased in concrete? The two do not go together and the pipes rots.

Mitzyboy

Yes I know, but not that easy
House built on side of mountain. Pipes go into a void under the house which is not accessible. Im assuming that a leak which has more than tripled there bill would be fairly obvious if it was outside, but we coulod see or hear nothing. Thats why I think its under the house, but the only way to get there is knock out the wall, very close to the foundations

Mitzyboy

No its the black plastic / rubber pipe, but I think the builder used cheap stuff

jdr

It depends if the leak is near a gully in the rocks you may never notice it.
Run the new pipe on the surface then, insulate it and cover with tiles, then all you need do is whack a hole through the wall and connect to the inside pipework.
Or find the end of the void and hope you can push another pipe in, but you will struggle.

Mitzyboy

It appears he substituted a wine glass for the funnel. Nothing heard against the walls, but he went along the patio and half way along he has heard a whirring / hissing noise, only when the water is turned on. So it would seem, luckily, the leak is outside the house.

Its the second leak on that stretch of pipe in three years though. The builder used black plastic, but not the stuff with the blue lines down it. Suspect it was the cheaper option

pete_l

My advice would be to not fix the leak but to rip out and/or replace the whole run of pipe.
If you've had a couple of leaks, then it's only a matter of time until you get another - and as you suspect it sounds like cheap stuff that's now perished. If the only way to know you've got a leak is when the water bill goes through the roof, it could get expensive

Mitzyboy

Cost him €400, as opposed to normal bill of about €70.
I told him to take up the whole strip of tiles and put a complete new pipe in. Its probably about 4 - 5 mtrs

I'm really worried if it ever happens to us theres a swimming pool built over where the water pipes run ... so my only alternative would be to lay a complete new pipe between the road and the house

Casa Santo Estevo

What did he use the stuff that waters gardens; Soaker hose I think they are called.

I have to agree it sounds like a case of digging it up and replacing with something suitable for the job. Bloody pain