Pool Leak Detection in Hot Springs, AR

A pool that needs topping off every day is not just annoying; it is a leak that is soaking the ground under your deck and running up your water and chemical bills. Bowen Plumbing provides pool leak detection in Hot Springs, AR, using tracer-gas and pressure testing to find leaks in the plumbing that runs beneath the deck and into the equipment pad, without jackhammering concrete to look for them.

Most pool leaks are not in the shell. They are in the underground lines: skimmer lines, main drain lines, return lines, and the suction and pressure side of the pump. Those pipes are buried under the deck where you cannot see them. We isolate each line, pressurize it with a safe hydrogen/nitrogen tracer gas, and sweep the deck and surrounding ground with our Multi-Pro detector. Where the gas surfaces, that is where the pipe has failed. Then we mark it so the repair is one small opening, not a demolished patio.

Pool Leak Detection by Bowen Plumbing in Hot Springs, AR

What’s included

Pressure test of skimmer, main drain, and return lines
Tracer-gas location of underground pool plumbing leaks
Marks the leak so repair is a single small opening
Works on concrete, gunite, vinyl-liner, and fiberglass pools
Spa and hot tub plumbing included
Repair of the located leak by our licensed team

How to tell if your pool is leaking

Every pool loses some water to evaporation, roughly a quarter inch a day in the Arkansas summer, more on windy days. Losing more than that, or losing water in cool overcast weather, points to a leak. The simple bucket test settles it: set a bucket of pool water on a step, mark the level inside the bucket and on the pool wall, and check both after 24 hours with the pump off. If the pool drops more than the bucket, you have a leak.

Also watch for wet or sunken spots around the deck, air bubbles coming from the return jets, a pump that struggles to hold prime, cracks in the deck, or a chemical balance that will not stay put. If the water loss stops when you shut off the pump, the leak is likely on the pressure side; if it continues, it is more likely the suction side or the shell.

Frequently asked questions

Do you have to drain my pool to find the leak?

No. We test the plumbing lines with the pool full. Lines are isolated at the equipment pad and pressurized independently, so we can find which line is leaking and where without lowering the water level.

Will you have to tear up my pool deck?

Not to find the leak. Tracer gas travels up through concrete and pavers and our detector reads it at the surface, so we can mark the leak from above. The repair itself needs an opening at the marked spot, but that is one small cut rather than exploratory demolition.

Do you find leaks in the pool shell or liner too?

Our specialty is the plumbing: skimmer, main drain, return, and equipment lines, which is where the majority of pool leaks are. If our line tests come back tight, that tells you the leak is in the structure or a fitting, and we will point you in the right direction rather than charge you to keep looking.

How much water is a pool leak actually costing me?

A leak that drops the pool half an inch a day on a typical 15 by 30 pool is roughly 140 gallons a day, more than 4,000 gallons a month, plus the chemicals and heat you are replacing with it. Over a summer that adds up quickly, and the water saturating the ground under the deck can undermine it.