Is this a small leak from under concrete floor or ?

[Curiousv]

I remove all moisture/water from this area and after few hours I checked again..I see very small amount of water/moisture there ...but when I checked at the water meter ...meter did not move at all ...it is digital meter and even the last digit of 7 digit numbers did not change.
Can it still be leak? if yes how deep is the this galvanized pipe under the concrete? and what do I need to cut concrete to get to the pipe?

 

[Smooky]

Maybe it is ground water seeping in and not a leaking pipe? Those pipes could be drain pipes of some sort and not water pipes. That white cap might be leaking. Sewer might be backing up and leaking out. It is hard to say with out being there.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Mike6f]

As a quick check for hidden leaks I was thinking about hooking up a pressure gauge on a faucet on the house side of a shut off valve, closing the valve and watching for a pressure drop.

 

[Curiousv]

As a quick check for hidden leaks I was thinking about hooking up a pressure gauge on a faucet on the house side of a shut off valve, closing the valve and watching for a pressure drop.

Can you please give me a link as to how to perform this pressure test? I guess digital meter not moving at all overnight ..is not enough to confirm that there is no leak?

 

[Reach4]

As a quick check for hidden leaks I was thinking about hooking up a pressure gauge on a faucet on the house side of a shut off valve, closing the valve and watching for a pressure drop.

I think that is not going to work. The results would depend on how elastic your pipes are, or if you have some kind of pressure tank where the air precharge is low enough. And even then it would be hard to quantify stuff.

If the pipes are not elastic, the pressure change would be from temperature as well as leaking. I am not saying it would not work, but I am saying I would not count on it.

If you turn off the water, release pressure, and the leak stops, you may have something. If the leak continues, it is ground water.

 

[Curiousv]

I think that is not going to work. The results would depend on how elastic your pipes are, or if you have some kind of pressure tank where the air precharge is low enough. And even then it would be hard to quantify stuff.

If the pipes are not elastic, the pressure change would be from temperature as well as leaking. I am not saying it would not work, but I am saying I would not count on it.

If you turn off the water, release pressure, and the leak stops, you may have something. If the leak continues, it is ground water.

Ok what you are suggesting is...turn off the water...open all faucets to remove all water in lines and wait for overnight and see if it leak stops...if yes than it will be something in line ...if leak does not stop..it would be ground water?
But how can ground water come all the way through floor ? floor is at least 4" concrete slab

 

[Curiousv]

Maybe it is ground water seeping in and not a leaking pipe? Those pipes could be drain pipes of some sort and not water pipes. That white cap might be leaking. Sewer might be backing up and leaking out. It is hard to say with out being there.

Can you please tell me what do I need to cover this...I am positive it is not a leak ...no movement in digital meter at all. Before I finish drywall I want to make sure this does not continue behind drywall. I am not sure if I can stop this but like rest of the floor at least I can stop it?

 

[Reach4]

Do you have any other areas doing that?
Do you have a sump pump?

If this is a slab not far below ground, it would be interesting to dig a hole outside, and see what the ground water level there is. Then maybe another hole 5 ft away to see how local that is.

I don't have a good test prescription for you. I was thinking something along the lines of reducing the air precharge on your thermal expansion tank, and then do blah blah blah.

Do you have a thermal expansion tank? That could supply that elasticity I was babbling about.

 

[Curiousv]

no I dont have thermal expansion tank ...neither sump pump
and I dont have other areas doing the same...only this area...

There is no other alternative than digging hole?

Also, can I put more concrete on this area to cover it? I do see there is a little crack where the leak is coming ...I touched the nipple in the picture as well as stub coming from the slab .....I did not feel any water...

 

[Reach4]

There is no other alternative than digging hole?

Could you test for the presence of chlorine or chloromine to identify if this is from city water? Maybe. I don't know if your volumes are enough for a test strip.