A slab leak is a supply or hot water pipe failing under or inside the concrete floor. In a block home on slab, the water has nowhere to go but up and out, so it shows as a warm spot, damp grout, cupped wood or a baseboard that will not stay dry. The water bill often climbs before anyone sees a puddle.
Signs of a leak under the slab
- A warm patch on tile or a bare floor
- The water meter moving with every faucet off
- Cupping wood or loose tile in one area
- Damp carpet tack strip along one wall
- The sound of running water with nothing on
Warm floor and a meter that keeps moving? The mitigation team can map it 24/7.
Book slab moisture mapping tonightWhy concrete takes longer to dry
Concrete is a Class 4 material: dense, slow to release water and slower still in humid air. The drying team lifts only the flooring that reads wet, tents the slab, and runs LGR or desiccant dehumidifiers until readings match a dry part of the same floor.
Who fixes the pipe
A plumber locates and repairs the leak, by a spot repair through the slab or a reroute through the attic or walls. The mitigation team handles the water damage on either side of that repair, and both appear separately in the claim file.
A meter test with every fixture off is the quickest check a homeowner can do before the crew arrives.
Slab Leak Water Damage in short
Mitigation after a pressure leak under or inside a concrete slab: moisture mapping of the floor, selective flooring removal, wall-bottom drying and slab drying to the IICRC S500 standard.