Leaks in water mains and pipelines create a characteristic noise which can be identified by skilled Leakage Technicians.

Technicians often describe the noise of a water leak as a “hiss” or “woosh” which is created as a result of pressurised water escaping for the water pipe at the leakage location. The escaping water creates vibrations along the pipeline and water column which can be detected some times 500m away from the leakage location.

Sensitive electronic listening equipment is used to listen for water leaks either sounding directly on the water pipe (fittings, house service pipes or ground probes) or using a ground microphone device to listen on the ground covering the water main.

Leakage Technicians need to consider a lot of variables when conducting acoustic leak detection; including:

• Pressure of water in the pipe.
• Pipe material.
• Pipe diameter.
• Ground coverage (eg: gravel, concrete or grass).
• Soil type (eg: sand or clay).
• External noises.

Acoustic leak detection is a very successful technique. Often it is used in conjunction with leak correlation techniques such as leak correlation to maximise efficiency.

Aqua Environmental uses a number of acoustic leak detection devices including the Palmer L-Mic, Fuji Tecom HG-10 (and HG-10AII) and Sewerin Steth-P.

Aqua Environmental aims to continuously remain at the forefront of the water leakage industry. We continually source the latest technological advancements, refine our methodologies and train and up skill all employees. As there is no formal training for those in our industry we have used our own internal knowledge from years of experience to develop a comprehensive training regime. Read More >

Aqua Environmental recently had two representives in London attending the 2010 Global Leakage Summit. This is the 4th Global Water Leakage Summit since 2006 - the Summits have become more and more popular with delegates, attracting a wide audience of utility managers, consultants, contractors and equipment suppliers. Read More >