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Leak Detection in the North End and Downtown Boise
Victorian, Craftsman and Tudor houses line the North End and the Highlands, and plenty of them still carry plumbing from several different decades. That mix is where hidden leaks like to start.
Your call is handed to a Boise plumbing office, and the hand-off can leave a short silence. Leave the call open until a person comes on.
What's behind the plaster
Houses this age were often re-plumbed in stages. A run of galvanized steel left inside a wall, copper added during a kitchen remodel, PEX in the newest bathroom. Every joint between an old material and a new one is a candidate for a slow leak.
Plaster and lath is also harder to open and patch than drywall. That's why pinpointing the leak before anything is cut matters more here than in a house built in 2005. Wall and ceiling leaks
Where leaks tend to start in an older Boise house
Galvanized pipe rusts from the inside until it pinholes, often at threaded joints. Old shutoff valves and hose bibs on exterior walls weep or split in a freeze. Bathrooms that were moved during a remodel can leave supply and drain lines running in odd places, sometimes under floors that were never opened again. And basement laundry hookups, with their supply hoses and old valves, are a common source of slow, unnoticed water.
Water where it shouldn't be?
Short pause, then a person.
Basements, crawl spaces and the add-on in back
Many North End homes have a partial basement with a crawl space under a later addition. A leak under the addition can run a long time without anyone noticing, because nobody goes back there. If the house smells musty at one end, or the floor feels cool and damp near a back bathroom, look there. Crawl space leaks
Big street trees and the line from the meter
Older streets in the North End and around Hyde Park are lined with mature trees, and their roots grow over and around service lines. Roots can crack old pipe, and a canopy of shade can hide a wet spot that would be obvious in a sunny yard.
If the meter keeps moving with the house shutoff closed, the trouble is in the yard. Under Veolia's rules, everything up to and including the meter box is Veolia's, and the line from there to your house is yours. Water line leaks
Your call is handed to a Boise plumbing office, and the hand-off can leave a short silence. Leave the call open until a person comes on.
Questions from North End homeowners
My North End house has galvanized pipe. Should I replace it before it leaks?
Galvanized steel corrodes from the inside, so low pressure and rusty water are early warnings. Some owners replace it in stages, others all at once. A plumber who looks at it can tell you how far gone it is.
Can a leak be found without damaging original plaster?
Usually the search happens with listening gear, a thermal camera and moisture meters first, so only a small, deliberate opening is made where the leak is marked.
Do Downtown condo owners call this line too?
Yes, for leaks inside a unit. In a condo building the HOA may handle shared lines, so check your association rules before any work in common areas.
Nearby: East End and the foothills · Also see high water bill checks