Slab Leak and Water Heater

11 years ago

Hello,

I am interested in your opinions regarding a few plumbing problems we have.

Last month, we noticed a small amount of water under our 6-year-old electric water heater (about 1/2 inch in the pan under the heater). It may have been there for awhile before we noticed. There were no obvious leaks from any pipes or valves, it seemed to be seeping out from underneath. A plumber came out and said we needed a new water heater, so he replaced it 2 days later with same size. Later that evening, we heard the sound of water running without any fixtures being turned on.

The plumber came back out the next day and determined we have a leaking hot water pipe in the slab that supplies our kitchen fixtures. He was able to locate where that pipe enters the slab and installed a shut off valve for that pipe. So now we are looking at options to repair the slab leak.

So, would it be rational to think the two issues were related? If the slab leak was already there- could it have caused the water under the water heater to appear? Is this a normal risk of having a new water heater installed- that a pipe might start leaking right after installation? I understand that slab leaks can just happen- our house is 24 years old, so pipes could be just wearing out.

Thanks for your help!

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Comment (1)

dwpc
11 years ago
If the point of the leak is more than a foot or two from the heater, its unlikely that its related to the new heater unless perhaps expansion from hotter water with the new heater made a piece of aggregate in the slab poke through the pipe a little sooner, but it was probably going to do it anyway. If its very close to the heater, movement/twisting of the pipe during installation could have caused it to crack if its not firmed bedded in the slab.

Be VERY wary of repairs to slab leaks. We learned the hard way. Many plumbers insist that you to agree in advance to an exorbitant fixed price though if the leak is accurately located by a specialist (they're very accurate) its not necessarily a big job. A good acoustic leak finder will pinpoint it within a couple inches. In our case, the plumber broke out a 12" x 12" hole the concrete at the identified spot, sleeved the leak, and refilled the hole with mortar in under an hour, but we had signed an $850 fixed price agreement and got burned. We had used that plumber several times before, but he lost us as customers. Our homeowners insurance covered the amount over our $500 deductible. You can also hire the leak finder service directly if you like.
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