Pinhole leak in a heating pipe under living room floorboards, Motherwell
Another engineer had confirmed the system was leaking but not where. Thermal, moisture, acoustic and tracer gas readings agreed on the living room before a single board was lifted.
- Location
- Motherwell, Lanarkshire (G71)
- Property
- Two-storey house
- System
- Combi boiler central heating, copper pipes under suspended floorboards
- First sign
- Recurring pressure drop; a previous engineer had confirmed a leak but not found it
- Engineer
- Hamaad Janjua, ADI Leak Detection
- Outcome
- Pinhole found; section replaced in copper
What was happening
The heating kept losing pressure. An engineer from another company had already confirmed there was a leak but had not located it.
The first physical sign was laminate flooring near the sink that had buckled, suggesting moisture coming up from under the floorboards.
How the leak was traced
Thermal imaging
Showed a heat spot in the living room: warm water escaping from the heating pipe below.
Moisture meter
A positive reading in the same area.
Acoustic listening
Sound consistent with an active leak under the living room boards.
Tracer gas
A positive result under the living room floor.
Endoscope camera
With the boards lifted, the camera confirmed the pinhole in the copper pipe.
What was found
A pinhole in the copper central heating pipe under the living room floorboards.
What happened next
The damaged section was cut out and replaced with new copper pipe.
The engineer noted that the pipes under the boards were not properly clipped or insulated and advised putting that right.
Four methods before one board came up
A pressure drop proves there is a leak somewhere. It took four separate methods agreeing to know which boards to lift.
Photos from the job
Moisture meter reading on the floor. 
Acoustic listening equipment. 
Tracer gas probe on the floor. 
The corroded pipe with the pinhole. 
New pipework fitted.
Case published by ADI Leak Detection. Photos taken by the engineer during the investigation.
