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Randy Howie > The original symptom of the water leak was water flowing on the surface of the patio at the entrance to the caretaker unit. The caretaker unit is a walkout basement unit with the entrance on the west side of the house. Flow was approximately equivalent to 2 garden hoses. Water was flowing through the retaining wall and up through the concrete slab at the entrance to the house.
Randy Howie > This picture gives a sense for the volume of water. Ripples in the surface of the water indicate current.
Randy Howie > This picture shows the relationship between the patio where the leak appeared and the perimeter drain on the opposite side of the retaining wall. This is the west side of the house. The next pictures that show the process of locating the water supply pipe were taken on the uphill (east) side of the house.
Randy Howie > An extension pipe approximately 25' long was attached to the perimeter drain to carry water away from the house.
Randy Howie > The water supply was hit within the first 15' of digging. The 7' deep trench filled with water.
Randy Howie > Water tests indicated that the water contained flouride, so it was assumed that the leak was caused by the house's water service. No records were available to show where the water service pipe ran from the water main in the street into the house. No water service curb shutoff valve could be located after weeks of searching. The pipe entering the house at the water meter was plastic, so it was not possible to trace the pipe using an electric signal. Because the plastic pipe was brittle, it was not practical to break the pipe at the water meter and fish a tracer back to the water main. Without any viable method for determining where the water supply pipe ran, the first diagnostic step was to dig this hole where the leak appeared at the caretaker unit. No water service pipe was found, but a perimeter drain on the right side of the retaining wall was found that had significant flow. The perimeter drain was clogged, which is what caused the water to come through the retaining wall. At this time, we knew why water was flowing onto the patio, but had no indication of where the water service pipe ran or where it was leaking into the perimeter drain.
Randy Howie > After pumping out the trench, a clamp was used to stop the water flow. Within 30 minutes, the water flow in the perimeter drain by the lower patio had stopped. This indicated that the leak was somewhere between the clamp and the house. Rather than dig up the driveway to locate the original leak, we decided to abandon the bad pipe and lay new pipe from the road into the house. Replacement pipe was necessary because it was impractical to splice new pipe into the plastic pipe that was originally used.
Randy Howie > East side of house. This shows the process used to locate the water supply pipe running from the water main under the road into the house. A trench was dug parallel to the driveway. Since we knew the location of the main, we knew this trench would have to eventually intersect the water supply spur.
Randy Howie > This picture shows the relationship between the trench used to locate the water service and the house.
The original symptom of the water leak was water flowing on the surface of the patio at the entrance to the caretaker unit. The caretaker unit is a walkout basement unit with the entrance on the west side of the house.

Flow was approximately equivalent to 2 garden hoses. Water was flowing through the retaining wall and up through the concrete slab at the entrance to the house.
Randy Howie > The original symptom of the water leak was water flowing on the surface of the patio at the entrance to the caretaker unit. The caretaker unit is a walkout basement unit with the entrance on the west side of the house. Flow was approximately equivalent to 2 garden hoses. Water was flowing through the retaining wall and up through the concrete slab at the entrance to the house.
The original symptom of the water leak was water flowing on the surface of the patio at the entrance to the caretaker unit. The caretaker unit is a walkout basement unit with the entrance on the west side of the house.

Flow was approximately equivalent to 2 garden hoses. Water was flowing through the retaining wall and up through the concrete slab at the entrance to the house.
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