Slab Leak Repair in Kokomo, Indiana
A slab leak is a pressurized water line leaking under a concrete floor, and the first sign is rarely water. It’s a water bill that jumped for no reason, a warm patch on the kitchen tile, or the sound of water running when every tap in the house is off. Summers Plumbing Heating & Cooling finds and repairs hidden leaks under slabs and basement floors across Howard and Tipton counties, out of 1609 Rank Parkway Court. Our plumbers are licensed, drug-tested and background-checked, they pinpoint the leak before anyone touches the concrete, and you get your repair options and prices in writing before any work starts. Phones are answered 24/7.
Book leak detection or call 765-236-1212.
Signs of a Slab Leak in a Kokomo Home
- A water bill that’s higher with no change in use. The most common first clue. A small slab leak runs 24 hours a day.
- The water meter moves with everything off. Shut every faucet, make sure the toilets aren’t running and the softener isn’t regenerating, then watch the leak indicator on the meter for 10 minutes. If it turns, water is going somewhere.
- A warm or hot spot on the floor. A hot-water line leaking under the slab heats the concrete above it. Bare feet find it before anything else does.
- Sound of running water when nothing is on, often loudest near the water heater or a bathroom.
- Damp carpet, cupped hardwood or loose tile with no leak above it.
- A musty smell or mildew along a baseboard.
- The water heater running constantly, because it’s refilling and reheating water that’s leaking out of a hot line.
- Low pressure at fixtures downstream of the leak.
Which Kokomo Homes Get Slab Leaks
Slab-on-grade ranches built in the 1950s through the 1970s, in Kokomo’s post-war neighborhoods and around Greentown and Russiaville, often have copper supply lines laid directly in or under the concrete. Over 50-plus years, hard water pits the copper from the inside, the concrete and gravel wear it from the outside, and expansion and contraction rub it against the slab at every bend. Homes with basements get the same thing in the basement floor where the main service line comes in. A leak under the slab is almost never the pipe’s first weak spot; it’s the first one you noticed.
How We Find a Slab Leak Without Tearing Up the Floor
- Confirm it. We read the meter, isolate the hot and cold sides, and pressure-test each to confirm there’s a leak and which line it’s on.
- Narrow it down. Thermal imaging shows the heat signature of a leaking hot line through the floor; acoustic listening equipment picks up the sound of water escaping under the concrete.
- Pinpoint it. We mark the spot on the floor, usually within a foot or two, so any opening is one small square rather than a trench across the kitchen.
- Show you the options in writing, with the price of each, before anything is cut.
The same process finds hidden leaks in walls, ceilings and under basement floors, so if your meter is moving and you can’t see where, this is the visit to book.
Slab Leak Repair Options
Spot repair through the slab. We cut a small opening over the leak, replace the damaged section, pressure-test it, and pour the concrete back. Fast and the least expensive up front. The right call when the rest of the line is sound and the leak is somewhere you can tolerate a patch, like a utility room or under carpet.
Reroute the line. We abandon the leaking line under the slab and run a new one in PEX through the walls, attic or basement ceiling to the same fixture. No floor cutting at all, and the new line is accessible if anything ever goes wrong. The better call when the leak is under finished tile or hardwood, or when the line is old copper that’s likely to leak again somewhere else.
Whole-house repipe. If it’s the second or third slab leak, or the camera and pressure tests show the whole system is failing, rerouting every supply line overhead ends the problem permanently. See repiping.
We’ll tell you which one we’d pick for our own house. Drain lines under the slab are a separate job; see drain repair.
Slab Leak Repair Pricing in Kokomo
Leak detection is quoted before we start. Repair depends on where the leak is and which option you choose, so we price it after we’ve pinpointed it, in writing, with spot repair and reroute side by side when both make sense. We meet or beat written quotes from other local companies, and financing is available for reroutes and repiping. See current Kokomo plumbing specials.
What to Do Before We Get There
If you can see water coming up or the floor is wet, shut off the main water valve. If it’s a hot-water leak, also turn the water heater to Vacation or off so it isn’t reheating water that’s draining into the ground. Take photos of any damage for your insurance company. Then call us; after-hours emergency service is available when water is actively coming into the house.
Serving Kokomo, Howard County and Tipton County
From the Rank Parkway office we cover all of Kokomo and Greentown, Russiaville, Sharpsville, Tipton, Windfall, Hemlock, Oakford, Kempton and the rural roads in between. See all plumbing services in Kokomo.
Slab Leak FAQs for Kokomo Homeowners
How do I know if I have a slab leak or just a running toilet?
Put a few drops of food coloring in each toilet tank and wait 15 minutes without flushing. If color shows up in the bowl, it’s the toilet. If the toilets are fine, everything is off, and the water meter is still moving, the leak is in a supply line, and if you can’t see it, it’s likely under the floor or in a wall.
Is a slab leak an emergency?
If water is coming up through the floor, yes. If it’s a slow leak you found from the water bill, it’s urgent but not a middle-of-the-night call: shut off the main when you’re not using water and book the first available appointment. Left alone, a slab leak can undermine the soil under the foundation.
Will you have to break up my floor?
Only if a spot repair is the option you choose, and then only a small square over the pinpointed leak. Rerouting the line through the walls or ceiling avoids the floor completely. We price both.
Does homeowner’s insurance cover slab leaks?
Many policies cover the cost of accessing the leak (breaking and restoring the floor) and the water damage it caused, but not the pipe repair itself. Policies vary, so call your agent with photos. We provide an itemized invoice that separates access, repair and restoration for the claim.
If I fix one slab leak, will I get another?
In a 50-year-old copper system on Kokomo’s hard water, it’s likely. That’s why we price a reroute alongside a spot repair: rerouting takes the line out from under the slab for good.
