water leak through concrete floor

Daggit

We have recently moved into a house which has concrete floors and we seem to have a leak coming through them. We didnt notice it when we first moved in, the water had been turned off and the house empty for about 8 months. When we did notice (was behind the dishwasher so thought it was that to begin with but it is not) put a heater on and it dried out but by morning it had come back. There were some central heating pipes going through the wall and as we were getting rid of the radiator we have cut and capped these off but still doesnt seem to be where the water is coming from. So we must have a leak in a pipe which is under a concrete floor! What do we do? We are at a loss and running out of money as the whole house has needed decorating etc and I'm currently without a kitchen and as the leak is in there we are unable to get one in until the leak is sorted.

So all you helpful people, what do I do next, who do I call, how much will it cost me and can I claim on my house/building ins for this type of thing bearing in mind we have only been here for 3 weeks.

Any help would be grateful as we are really worried about how much this is going to cost us.

Many thanks

thescouselander

I think you might need to get this looked at. My boss was telling me how this happened to someone he knows. The water main going into the house had burst causing something similar to what you describe. It had been like that a long time and water had been leaking under the floor unnoticed - it eventually got into the foundations and caused the house to sink!

olias

I think the only option will be to dig up the concrete floor. Not as drastic as it sounds, should only cost a day rate for a builder to dig up and locate pipe and you can either fix leak yourself if competent or a plumber could do it in an hour, then patch the concrete. Whole thing should cost about £250 unless they discover further problems such as voids where substrate has washed away, damage to foundations etc or if the source is found to be a spring or other groundwater. Can you do some detective work to discover what pipework (if any) runs under the floor. Check main service pipe, CH, hot and cold feeds to sink/bathroom/cloakroom/utility/outside taps etc etc.

Olias

penguinlegs

Have just discovered this - it seems similar to what has just happened to us. We noticed black/dark patches under the lino in the kitchen which was also rising in the corners. Also the wallpaper in the hall (which shares a wall with the kitchen was peeling and looking damp.

Pulled up the lino and removed the wallpaper up to where the dampness stopped. The floor (concrete) was soaked - likewise the plaster on the wall.

We used a dehumidifier to dry out the kitchen floor. Most of this is now okay and we discovered that the washing machine area was dry.

There is still a wet looking area on the floor around the cupboards and cooker that back onto the shared wall and the hall wall is also still damp with white crystals/dust (Mould?) reappearing as fast as I clean it off.

There is also a small damp patch on the other side of the kitchen. Our kitchen and hall are an extended part of our bungalow that the previous owners built.

We don't know whether to call a plumber, damp proof specialists or ghostbusters quite frankly, any help, advise greatly received. Sorry for the long post.

thank you.

geo555

Check every waterpipe coming out of the floor. I had a similar problem, the cause was a very small leak where the pipe joined the tap, in a sink about 25ft from where the wet patch appeared. Water will find a way under the concrete and rise when it finds space ie. a crack.

penguinlegs

geo555 wrote: »

Check every waterpipe coming out of the floor. I had a similar problem, the cause was a very small leak where the pipe joined the tap, in a sink about 25ft from where the wet patch appeared. Water will find a way under the concrete and rise when it finds space ie. a crack.

Thanks for the info. Have just pulled out cooker a bit further and there is a crack in the concrete under it!. Now all I've got to do is find the pipe!