Case Study: A Heating Leak Found Before an Exmouth House Sale

A real DCI job: daily pressure loss in a house about to be sold, traced with tracer gas, acoustics and a camera in one three-hour visit and repaired.

Last updated: 1 September 2026 · DCI Leak Detection · A real job from our records, published with the details anonymised

The job at a glance

Exmouth, February 2026. A central heating system needing repressurising every single morning, in a house that was about to be sold. Traced in a single three-hour visit using tracer gas, acoustic listening and an inspection camera, then repaired. The next morning the heating was on and the pressure had not moved.

The problem: a daily top-up and a completion date

Daily pressure loss means water is leaving the heating circuit quickly, and this system needed recharging every morning. Ordinarily that is urgent; with a house sale in progress it was doubly so, because nobody wants to hand a buyer a known fault, and no seller wants a surveyor finding one first.

Finding it: three tools, three hours

Terms were sent by text before booking so there were no surprises, and the visit was planned as a three-hour slot. The circuit was tested with tracer gas, listened to acoustically, and inspected by camera, the combination we use when a heating leak is hiding somewhere under floors. The leak was found and the repair completed.

The outcome: constant pressure, sale protected

The morning after the visit the heating came on normally and the gauge stayed put, confirmed by the customer with some delight. The system went into the sale working and provable, which is worth more than the repair itself in a transaction where buyers price in doubt.

What this job shows

  • Daily pressure loss is a live leak, not a quirk. Our guide to a combi boiler losing pressure covers how to read the speed of the drop.
  • Selling? Fix it before the survey. A found-and-repaired leak with paperwork reads very differently from a mystery fault on a survey report.
  • The right kit shortens the job. Tracer gas, acoustics and a camera in one visit: that is our central heating leak detection service doing what it is for.

Got a leak that needs finding?

DCI Leak Detection finds hidden water, heating and pool leaks across Cornwall and Devon using tracer gas, acoustic listening and thermal imaging, with an insurer-ready trace and access report on every job. No find, no fee on residential work, subject to terms.

Call Dickie on 07822 025 911 Fast response across Cornwall & Devon · Insurance-approved reports · More case studies

Before you go

Still worried about a hidden leak?

Leave your name and number and we will call you back to talk it through. No obligation.

*Subject to terms. See our terms

Get a free call back

Fast reply, usually within 30 minutes.

Rather talk now? Call Dickie on 07822 025 911

Before you go

Still worried about a hidden leak?

Leave your name and number and we will call you back to talk it through. No obligation.

*Subject to terms. See our terms

Get a free call back

Fast reply, usually within 30 minutes.

Rather talk now? Call Dickie on 07822 025 911