East Anglian Leak Detection
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Swaffham and the Breckland farms

Leak detection in Swaffham for farms and outlying homes

Around Swaffham, one meter at the roadside often feeds a farmhouse, cottages and yards along pipes nobody mapped. Leak detection in Swaffham starts by splitting those branches, then our engineer Charlie traces the leaking one.

Lines open 8am to 8pm daily

Unrecorded pipe routes traced

Farm branches tested one by one

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Lines open 8am to 8pm, every day.

Swaffham is a Breckland market town with a wide market place at its heart, Georgian buildings around it and newer estates on its edges. Beyond the town, farms, barn conversions and cottages sit at the end of tracks, often sharing one supply that has been extended many times.

A pipe first laid to a farmhouse may since have been branched to a barn, a stable block and a field trough, with the route never written down. So when a leak letter arrives, we find the leaking branch first, and only then look for the leak.

A farm track leading across ploughed fields to a red brick farmhouse under a wide sky, typical of rural Norfolk Victorian red brick terraced houses on a sloping street, typical of Norwich

Jobs we typically see around Swaffham

Leak on the pipe to a line of field troughs

The property

A farm outside Swaffham where one roadside meter feeds the farmhouse, two cottages and a line of field troughs. The trough pipe runs along a hedge.

The problem

The water bill had jumped and the meter never rested, even overnight. Every trough's float valve was working, and no wet ground showed along the hedge.

How we found it

Closing the valve to the trough line stopped the meter, and that length then failed a pressure test. Walking the hedge with the ground microphone found the loudest point near the second trough; tracer gas surfaced there too.

The outcome

Only a short trench beside that trough was dug, and the split length replaced, quoted separately. We warned that older pipe further along could have other weak spots.

High reading on a brand new supply pipe

The property

A newly built house on the town's edge, with a plastic supply pipe under the drive from the pavement meter to a utility room stop tap.

The problem

The first readings showed water passing the meter day and night, though every tap was off. The owners could not believe a new pipe was leaking.

How we found it

A pressure test on the new pipe, with the stop tap shut, fell steadily. Tracer gas pushed into it came up through the drive at a push-fit joint near the meter.

The outcome

Only the drive over the joint was lifted, and a new joint went in before we left, at a price fixed in advance.

Farms, new homes and the market place

Farms with one meter and many buildings

The bill or the supplier's letter says water is vanishing somewhere on the holding. List every building and trough on the supply, and where any valves are.

New houses on the edge of town

A high reading on a freshly laid pipe seems impossible, but push-fit joints can fail. A pressure test on the new pipe settles whether it holds.

Businesses around the market place

A shop or office bill that jumps needs the leak found with little disruption. Businesses may be asked to pay in advance, and need to give a working day's notice to cancel.

One meter, many branches

Swaffham and its villages are supplied by Anglian Water. On a farm, one meter at the road may feed the house, cottages, yards and troughs, so a leak letter cannot say which branch is at fault. Everything after the meter is usually the owner's, including branches that cross a field.

Searching a farm supply branch by branch

1

Sketch what the supply feeds

Before the visit, list every building, trough and standpipe on the meter, and any valves. A rough sketch of likely pipe runs saves time on the day.

2

Shut one branch at a time

Closing each valve in turn while someone watches the meter shows which branch is losing water. Without a valve, a pressure test on that length does the job.

3

Gas over the ground, then a check

We feed tracer gas into the leaking branch and sweep the ground for it, in strips if the route is unknown. Listening then confirms the spot before we mark it.

Tests for long farm pipes and new estates

Tracer gas

A hydrogen and nitrogen mix finds its own way out of a buried pipe, so the leak can be found even where nobody knows the route. The branch is isolated first.

Acoustic listening

On older metal pipe and under hard yards, the ground microphone hears a leak clearly. Long plastic runs under soft ground carry less sound, so gas takes over.

Pressure testing

Shutting off a length and fitting a gauge proves whether it holds. That clears a new pipe or an outbuilding branch quickly, before any searching starts.

Farm policies and outbuilding pipes

On a farm, the house, outbuildings and yard pipework may fall under different parts of a policy, or different policies. Check which covers the leaking pipe, whether it includes trace and access, and if the insurer wants to approve us first. The report gives the location, methods, readings and photographs.

Common questions in Swaffham

It makes the search longer. Tracer gas finds the leak without knowing the route, but sweeping a field takes time, so we agree the search price, by the half day or the day, before booking. An unknown route is outside no find, no fee on home water leaks; full conditions are on our terms page.

Yes. Tell us the cottage is let and who is paying, and arrange for the tenant to let us in. If the cottage shares the farm’s meter, valves on the farm side may need closing too, so someone who knows the supply should be about.

Each one adds pipe, and some can mimic a leak: a trough whose float valve sticks will run water all night. Knowing what is on the supply, and where the valves are, lets us rule those out before searching underground.

Yes, along with the other villages and farms around the town. Rural homes there often have the same long, extended supplies, so when you ring, tell us the distance from the road to the house and what the pipe crosses on its way.

Usually, yes. Mending it carries a separate quote, and an agreed price holds when we do it on that visit. Old farm pipe can split again elsewhere once it is tested or repaired, and any further work would be priced separately.

Market towns and villages nearby

Watton lies to the south-east and Dereham to the east, with North Elmham beyond. Downham Market is to the west, and Brandon sits over the Suffolk border in the Brecks.

Leak detection in Watton Leak detection in Dereham Leak detection in North Elmham Leak detection in Hingham Leak detection in Downham Market Leak detection in Brandon Leak detection in Norfolk
Flint and red brick cottages with pantile roofs facing a village green, with a round-towered church behind, typical of a Norfolk village

Leaks we trace

Water leak detection Leaking water main Central heating leak detection Leaking underfloor heating Shower leak detection Underground water leak detection Gas pipe leak detection Thermal imaging leak detection Acoustic water leak detection Tracer gas leak detection Commercial leak detection Trace and access leak detection Leak detection for landlords Water leak repair

Useful guides

Boiler overflow pipe dripping outside: what it means Damp patch on an internal wall: leak, condensation or something else? Gas meter capped after a leak: what happens next Hot water leak or cold water leak: how to tell which pipe is leaking

Water going missing on your farm?

Ring 07700 102 008, 8am to 8pm every day. We can usually book a visit within 24 to 48 hours.

Call 07700 102 008 Get a quote
East Anglian Leak Detection