Finding and Solving Leaks in Your Watering System

In the last week or so, I’ve received several inquiries on water systems from producers trying to diagnose pump issues or other problems. I guess I just couldn’t be left out of that crowd because I now have a leak in an area where I had moved some soil around late summer.   Sometimes trying to figure out exactly what is going on with a leak can be difficult. An example of that is trying to find a leak in a long pipeline run going down a hill. The leak is most likely not where the water is coming to the surface, but where it found the easiest route out. The source is quite often close to the actual elevation of the leak, very similar to the workings of a spring. If the pipeline is three feet deep, then start looking about three feet in elevation uphill from the leak. Sometimes you are lucky, especially if it is on relatively flat ground and the water just surfaces from the same spot. It is always good to adhere to good installation practices when installing pipeline. Before covering up a newly installed pipeline, it is always best to pressurize it for a day to check for leaks before burying it. If you have tees going off those lines, it never hurts to write down reference points, take a GPS point and or picture for later reference before covering it all up That has paid off for me more than once, especially when I wante