Just back from vacation, you have the unpleasant surprise to receive your water bill, the exorbitant amount of which made you jump to the ceiling.

Not having consumed more than usual, you had to face the facts: it is likely that you have a water leak.

Whether it is important or not, it is crucial that it is taken care of quickly in order to avoid damage, unnecessary expense and waste.

We explain how to easily detect and fix it.

Basic checks

The first instinct to have is to go around the faucets in your house to check if they are properly closed and to make sure that your flush is working properly. If you have a garden, also take a look at the setting of your automatic sprinkler system. If everything seems normal to you, in the evening, turn off your taps, stop flushing the toilet and make sure that your water heater, boiler or hot water tank as well as your household appliances such as washing machine and dishwashers are not in working order, then read your meter. The next morning, if you notice that your meter has continued to run overnight even though you have not consumed anything, there is indeed a leak.

To locate it, close the water inlets one after the other, each time looking at the numbers on the meter.

As soon as it stops, you have found the circuit where the leak is located.

You can then change the faulty part or hire a plumber.

The bane of invisible leaks

Despite your research, you still cannot find where the leak is coming from? It may then be a broken pipe, a problem that requires the immediate intervention of a plumber. This is because if the leak is located in one of your walls, even if the damage ends up being visible (peeling wallpaper, damp stains, musty smell, curling partitions), you probably will not be able to fix the problem without professional help. On the other hand, if the cracked pipe is buried in the ground, the damage could be considerable, even threaten the solidity of the structure without you noticing it, and subsequently require major drainage and renovation work. In this case, only a properly equipped plumber will be able to locate the leak precisely,using a tracer gas, a thermal camera or a specific microphone.

Be aware that some home insurance contracts include the search for leaks, find out if you can benefit from this service for free.

An ecological ... and economic disaster

Not to mention the many damage that a pierced pipe could cause in your home, the slightest leak or faulty plumbing can have serious consequences.

So a dripping faucet can waste up to 120 liters of water every day, while a flush leak is a waste of 600 liters a day.

At the end of the year, several hundred euros are then lost in nature.

A heavy impact for the environment, but also for your wallet.

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A life-saving reimbursement

In the event of a crack in a pipe responsible for a major leak, you can claim an invoice relief.

The Warsmann law of May 17, 2011 provides that if your consumption exceeds double your usual consumption and subject to sending your water supplier a repair certificate from a plumbing company (indicating the date of the work as well as the precise origin of the leak) within a month, the difference will have to be refunded to you.

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