For a new home or an active development, the useful starting point is the plot’s history: which circuit loses pressure, what was tested and which finishes are already in place. ADI investigates hidden leaks so the site team can plan the next step from the findings.
Use the plot reference consistently across drawings, photographs and test records. A pressure-loss report is easier to investigate when the team can identify the circuit involved and what has happened to it since installation.
Gather available pipe-route photographs, manifold labels and installer records. Include the test date, circuit and recorded result where these exist; do not fill gaps from memory as if they were documented.
Record when screed, flooring or boxing was installed, any subsequent work nearby and when the symptom first appeared. Note whether the property is under construction, handed over or occupied.
Agree access and who can authorise further work. Keep the engineer’s findings alongside the plot record, including any limitations and the repair or retest still to arrange.
Pick a part of the house, from the supply pipe under the driveway to the shower upstairs, to see what a leak there looks like and how it is found.
What you notice. The supply to a new home runs from the meter at the boundary, under the new driveway and up into the kitchen. A meter that turns with every tap off, block paving that sinks, a patch of lawn that stays soggy in dry weather.
How it is found. Acoustic ground microphones, tracer gas and a trace wire to follow a plastic pipe, then one small, targeted dig to reach it.
How we investigate supply pipe and drivewayWhat you notice. Underfloor heating pipes are laid in loops and buried in screed across the ground floor. The system needs topping up, one spot of floor stays damp, grout darkens, or salts appear around the manifold cupboard.
How it is found. Each loop is isolated at the manifold and pressure tested. Thermal imaging shows where the pipes really run, and acoustic listening and tracer gas close in on the leak before any screed comes up.
How we investigate underfloor heating in screedWhat you notice. Plastic pipe and push-fit joints run through the joists and behind plasterboard. A ceiling stain under the en-suite, a bulge in fresh plaster, water where a shelf, a TV bracket or a kitchen unit was fixed to the wall.
How it is found. Moisture mapping and thermal imaging trace the water, a borescope camera through a small hole confirms it, and pressure testing shows whether it is the hot supply, the cold or the heating.
How we investigate pipes in walls and ceilingsWhat you notice. A leak that only shows when someone showers: a stain on the ceiling below, loose tiles, a musty smell, or water round the base of the tray or the toilet.
How it is found. Dye tests on the tray, screen, seals and waste show which part is letting water through, with moisture readings and a pressure test of the supplies to rule the pipes in or out.
How we investigate showers and bathroomsWhat you notice. A boiler that needs repressurising every few days, a cylinder cupboard with a damp floor, a radiator pipe that disappears into the floor next to a swollen skirting board.
How it is found. Pressure testing circuit by circuit, thermal imaging of the flow and return pipes, and tracer gas in the heating system where the pipe is buried.
How we investigate boiler, cylinder and radiatorsWhat you notice. Water that appears after heavy rain: around a new window frame, under a flat roof or balcony, at a roof junction or where a soil pipe goes through the roof.
How it is found. Moisture mapping and thermal imaging from inside, then dye, tracer gas or an electronic roof leak detector on a flat roof or balcony. ADI locates and reports roof and window leaks; the repair is for the builder or a roofer.
How we investigate roof, windows and balconiesEngineers combine these tests to find a leak in new pipework under screed, behind boarding or in ceiling voids before finishes are opened.
A safe, non-flammable hydrogen and nitrogen mix is put into the pipe or void. It escapes at the leak, rises through the floor or ground, and a detector picks it up at the surface.
In a new build: Supply pipes under new driveways, underfloor heating loops and flat roofs.
A detector picks up gas escaping from hidden pipes beneath floors or driveways.
Ground and pipe microphones amplify the sound of water escaping under pressure. The loudest point is the leak.
In a new build: Supply pipes under paving and gardens, and isolated heating pipes, ideally when the street is quiet.
Sensitive microphones listen for water escaping from buried pipes.
Two sensors clamped to a pipe record the leak noise from either side; the correlator works out how far along the pipe the leak sits.
In a new build: Longer supply runs across a plot, and pipes in screed where listening alone is slow.
Two sensors use leak sounds to narrow down its position along a pipe.
A thermal camera shows warm pipes and cold, wet patches behind finished surfaces. It scans large areas quickly and is always paired with another method to confirm.
In a new build: Mapping underfloor heating loops, and hot pipes buried in new walls and floors.
Thermal cameras trace warm pipes and damp patches, with another test to confirm.
A camera on a flexible tube goes through a small, easily made-good hole to look inside a void, a duct or a boxed-in pipe.
In a new build: Ceiling voids under en-suites and boxed-in pipes behind new plasterboard.
A small camera looks inside ceilings and boxed-in pipework through an access hole.
Pin and pinless meters read moisture in walls, floors and concrete. Plotted across the area, the readings show where the water has travelled and where it started.
In a new build: Working out how far water has spread through new screed, plaster and joists.
Moisture readings show where water has spread through floors and walls.
Each circuit is isolated and held under pressure. A drop confirms a leak on that circuit; a steady gauge rules it out, and proves a repair afterwards.
In a new build: Isolating each underfloor loop and supply in turn, and proving a repair before the floor goes back down.
Testing each circuit separately identifies which pipe or heating loop is losing water.
The first case concerns a house under construction. The other two concern homes with pipes under screed; their build age is not established. They are included for the circuit findings, not as additional new-build commissions.
A loop failed its pressure test after the screed was laid. Sound and gas both travelled along the pipes, so thermal imaging with warm water found the leak on the far side of the room.
The preparation guide sets out the installation dates, circuit symptoms and follow-up details to record for each plot. It can be used by the site team or the aftercare contact.
Give the postcode, what you have noticed and the age of the house. Housebuilders should say which plot and what stage it has reached. The office asks about the supply, the heating and access, then gives you availability and a quote.
Access is needed to the meter, the stopcock, the boiler and cylinder, the underfloor heating manifold and the affected rooms. On a live site, let the office know about inductions, PPE and who has the keys to the plot.
The engineer starts with the meter, the stopcock, the boiler pressure and the manifold, and asks what has changed since you moved in. Commercial jobs for housebuilders include a risk assessment and method statement.
Each circuit is pressure tested to separate the one losing water. Thermal imaging, moisture mapping, acoustic equipment, tracer gas and cameras then locate the leak. Water or heating may need turning off briefly for some tests.
The report includes photographs, findings and recommendations, and can go as it stands to the builder, the warranty provider or your insurer.
Pipework leaks, underfloor heating pipe included, can be quoted and repaired, often on the same visit, then pressure tested. Roof, window and tiling faults are located and reported for the builder or the right trade.
New Build Leak Detection is a specialist service from ADI Leak Detection. About the provider.
Read the full review“Hamaad from ADI was great. He was very thorough with his work and communicated everything very clearly. He was able to locate the leak and provided a detailed report that could be shared with my insurer. He went above and beyond to answer questions about my insurance claim from both me and my insurer. I'd highly recommend their services.”
Read the full review“We had a major water leak of approximately 220 litres per hour and, with a holiday booked only a few days later, we urgently needed someone to find and repair it. […] Frank arrived at our house. He was extremely polite, professional and clearly very experienced. He quickly set up the equipment, carried out a tracer gas test and pinpointed the leak to an area just outside our garage underneath the driveway. […] The whole job, from arriving at our house to finding and repairing a 220 litre-per-hour leak, was completed in around three hours.”
Read the full review“Craig was punctual, knowledgeable, efficient and very tidy. This is a large property and he traced leaks and sources of damp in walls and in heating pipes under concrete floors.”
Read the full review“Robert Gires attended our property and was extremely professional, knowledgeable and meticulous throughout the whole process. He carefully removed part of the kitchen cabinet to gain access, dug into the floor to properly investigate and assess the leak, and explained what he was doing along the way. What impressed me most was the care he took with our property. Once the investigation was completed, Robert put everything back in place neatly and left the area tidy.”
New Build Leak Detection, a specialist service from ADI Leak Detection. ADI started in 2011 and has more than twenty-five leak investigation engineers across England, Scotland and Wales, working in finished homes and on building sites.
Usually. Tracer gas, acoustics, thermal imaging, moisture mapping and camera inspection narrow the leak to a small area before anything is opened. Some jobs still need an opening to confirm and repair the fault, and no survey can promise zero disturbance, but the aim is one small hole in the screed or plasterboard rather than a room taken apart.
Tell the builder in writing as soon as you find a leak: most new home warranties expect it, and many make the builder responsible for defects in the first two years. You can still bring ADI in, because the builder asks for it or because you want the leak found and recorded independently. The report gives the builder, the warranty provider or your insurer the location and the evidence. Check your own warranty document for how to report a problem.
Call the office with the postcode and the office team will give you current availability. ADI has more than twenty-five engineers across England, Scotland and Wales, and water coming through a new ceiling or floor is treated as urgent. We do not promise arrival times on a website; you get a real answer on the phone.
Pipework leaks, including supply pipes and underfloor heating pipe, can be quoted and repaired, often on the same visit, and pressure tested afterwards. Roof, window, tiling and shower tray faults are located and reported for the builder or the right trade. Repairs are charged separately from the survey and are quoted before any work starts.
Most leaks in new homes come from how something was fitted rather than from wear. A push-fit joint that was never pushed fully home, a pipe caught by a screw when the kitchen, skirting or a TV bracket went up, an underfloor heating loop damaged while the screed was laid, or a shower tray that moves as the house dries out. Some show up in the first few weeks; others take months, until a joint finally gives.
Often, if your home insurance includes trace and access, which is the insurer’s name for finding and exposing a hidden leak. With a new home the builder or the warranty may be responsible first, so check both before the visit and tell the office what they need. ADI’s report carries photographs, findings and recommendations for exactly that purpose.
Yes. Engineers attend plots under construction and newly completed homes, hold CSCS cards for site work, and supply a risk assessment and method statement for commercial jobs. A typical call is an underfloor heating loop that fails its pressure test after the screed has gone down. Tell the office the plot, the stage of the build and who the site contact is.
Describe what you have noticed, how old the house is and the postcode. The office team will talk through the survey, give you a quote and current availability, and book the engineer.
