Richard, our Plumbing Operations Manager and Estimator, received a call from one of our existing customers at the Central West Business Park regarding water leaking from under the road at the main entrance.
Water was coming up through joins in the concrete driveway outside the security gatehouse. The customer reported the domestic water meter was not ticking over, so they suspected it may be on their fire service supply feeding the fire hydrant and fire sprinkler system.
Richard organised an emergency plumber to attend site on the spot. Richard also headed to the site to meet the plumber as he suspected traffic management may need to be organised before repair work could commence. This was due to the water leaking from the main drive into the business park.
Quick Arrival on Site
Within half an hour, Richard, Sean, and Michael - our experienced licensed plumbers - had arrived on site. It was obvious there was a substantial water leak as it was pouring out through the expansion joints in the concrete slab, so the first task was to isolate the water supply.
As Essendon Plumbing Services had worked for the customer for more than 15 years, we had extensive knowledge of all plumbing services on site. Sean and Michael quickly located the fire service supply valve and turned it off. The fire service on site is a monitored system so the fire panel was isolated and MFB notified of the disruption to site. Within 10 minutes the water flow had started to reduce so they were sure they had turned off the water supply to the burst pipe.
Organising a Traffic Management Plan
Richard contacted our Traffic Management Team and organised a Traffic Management Plan for the work that needed to be carried out. The work was close to a main road so 24/7 traffic management was required until the road was re-opened. In addition, Richard also completed a Dial Before You Dig application.
In the meantime, Sean and Michael had organised concrete saw cutting and below ground asset detection services for the following day.
By the following morning Richard had received all the information from Dial Before You Dig, and it was forwarded to our contractor carrying out the below ground services survey.
Richard had:
- Been given the all clear
- The pre work documentation
- Completed the safe work method statements
- Signed off the statements
- The customer signed off the statements
It was now time to find the leak and repair it.
Locating the Burst Pipe
Once traffic management was in place, the first step was to carry out leak detection to locate the exact depth and position of the burst pipe. Then it was time to cut the concrete and excavate the area to expose the leaking pipe.
With the use of an excavator, Sean and Michael quickly exposed the fire service pipe and located the source of the water leak. They found a previous pipe repair had been carried out incorrectly causing the pipe to fail and burst.
Sean organised all the plumbing materials required to repair the pipe to be delivered the following day, while Michael continued exposing the pipe so repair works could be carried out.
Throughout the process the site operations manager was constantly kept updated. He was concerned because the pipe ran across the road of the main entrance to the car park and if the old pipe failed again, they would need to go through traffic management again.
The decision was made to replace the old pipe with new PVC pipe across the road to eliminate the pipe bursting again.
Repairing the Burst Pipe
The repairs were carried out over the next two days before the excavation could be backfilled and the road re-instated. The concrete required 7 days to cure, so steel road plates were installed over the concrete for protection before the driveway was re-opened and our customer’s business was fully operational again.
Need to Locate a Water Leak in Melbourne?
Locating a leak below ground requires an expert plumber experienced in pipe location. Correctly locating pipes prior to excavation will prevent unnecessary damage and save considerable costs in repairs. A detailed process needs to be followed to correctly detect water leaks; this takes an experienced licensed plumber.
Essendon Plumbing Services has a team of dedicated licensed plumbers experienced in locating and repairing water leaks, if you suspect you have a leak then give us a call on 1300 193 298, or complete our online booking form.
Contact Us
Call Essendon Plumbing Services on 1300 193 298, or complete our online booking form. We are available 24/7 and here to help.
Need a Same Day Hot Water Service Plumber?
19 Catalina Drive Tullamarine VIC 3043
03 9335 4755
info@essendonplumbingservices.com.au
