Call us, describe what you're seeing (water, damp, a rising bill), and we'll talk you through immediate steps like the stopcock. On site, emergency leak detection starts with a visual check, then non-invasive tools such as thermal imaging, acoustics and tracer gas pinpoint the source. There's no call-out fee, pricing is fixed upfront, and residential jobs run on No Find, No Fee (subject to terms).
Water coming from somewhere it shouldn't is stressful, and most people calling us have never had to deal with it before. This guide sets out exactly what happens from the moment you pick up the phone: what we ask, what you should and shouldn't do before we arrive, how the visit itself unfolds, and how pricing works. If you're mid-emergency right now, the short version is: call 07822 025 911, and read on when things have calmed down.
On this page
The phone call: what we'll ask you
The first job on the phone is working out what's actually happening, not booking a slot and hoping. A few straightforward questions get us there quickly:
- Is water actively escaping right now, or is this a stain, a bulge, or a bill that's crept up with no visible water?
- Where is it showing: a ceiling, a wall, under a floor, outside, near a boiler or cylinder?
- Do you know where your stopcock is, and has anyone touched it already?
- Has a plumber, insurer or loss adjuster already been involved, and is there a report we should see?
- What's the address and access like: is anyone home, is there parking, is it a holiday let with a key safe?
None of this is box-ticking. A ceiling stain with no active dripping is a very different job to water actively coming through a light fitting, and the answers shape whether we treat it as urgent or schedule it in the normal run of the diary.
Photos help more than you'd think
If you can safely take a couple of photos on your phone before we arrive, of the stain, the drip, the meter, anything relevant, send them over. It gives us a head start on what equipment to bring and sometimes rules things in or out before we've even left the yard.
What to do before we arrive
- Turn off the stopcock if water is actively escaping and you know where it is. This usually stops the flow without affecting the ability to trace the source later.
- Move anything valuable out of the path of dripping water: furniture, electricals, boxes on the floor.
- Isolate electrics near water if it's safe to do so, and don't touch light fittings or sockets that water is running into.
- Note the time it started and roughly how much water has come through, which helps both us and any insurance claim.
- Keep the area accessible: clear a path so we're not moving furniture before we can even start looking.
If the leak is inside a wall or under a floor with no visible water, there's often nothing physical to do beyond calling us. Don't be tempted to start opening up plasterboard or lifting boards yourself; that can destroy the evidence a thermal camera or acoustic sensor would otherwise pick up cleanly.
What not to do
If you smell gas at any point, this is not a job for a leak detection specialist. Leave the property, don't operate switches or naked flames, and call the National Gas Emergency line on 0800 111 999 straight away.
On site: how emergency leak detection actually works
Once we're with you, the process is methodical rather than dramatic. Films make leak detection look like guesswork with a stethoscope; in practice it's a sequence of non-invasive checks that narrow the search area before anything gets opened up.
Step by step
- Visual survey and history: we walk the affected area, look at pipe runs, check for obvious external clues, and talk through what you've noticed and when.
- Thermal imaging: a FLIR thermal camera picks up temperature differences in walls, floors and ceilings that often correspond to a wet patch or a warm heating pipe leaking under a screed floor.
- Acoustic detection: sensitive listening equipment and correlators pick up the sound signature of water escaping under pressure, even through masonry or below a slab.
- Tracer gas: for pressurised pipework, a safe mix of hydrogen and nitrogen is introduced and a sensitive probe detects where it escapes at the surface, a reliable way to confirm a location precisely.
- Moisture readings: calibrated moisture meters confirm which areas are actually wet, ruling out condensation or historic staining that isn't an active leak.
The combination matters more than any single tool. A thermal camera flags where to look; acoustics and tracer gas confirm it; a moisture meter checks the extent. Together they let us tell you where the leak is with confidence, before a single tile or floorboard comes up. For the full method behind this, see our guide to water leak detection.
When it's a heating system, not a water supply
Leaks inside a sealed central heating circuit, under a screed floor, behind a radiator, along a pipe run in a cupboard, need a slightly different approach, often combining pressure testing with thermal imaging, since the same water recirculates rather than draining away visibly. Our plumbing leak detection service covers both supply-side and heating-circuit leaks, and we'll tell you on the phone which type your symptoms sound like.
Pricing: no call-out fee, fixed quotes upfront
We don't charge a call-out fee to come and look, and once we've assessed the job we give a fixed price before any further work starts, not a vague hourly estimate that grows once we're on site. On residential leak detection, we also work on a No Find, No Fee basis, subject to terms, which we'll explain clearly on the phone so there's no confusion about what it covers.
| What you get | How it works |
|---|---|
| Call-out | No fee to have us come and assess a suspected leak. |
| Quote | Fixed price given upfront once the scope of the job is clear, before work proceeds. |
| Residential guarantee | No Find, No Fee on residential leak detection, subject to terms explained at the time. |
| Method | Non-invasive first: thermal imaging, acoustic detection, tracer gas, moisture meters. |
Market pricing for UK leak detection specialists more broadly tends to fall somewhere in the £500 to £1,500 range depending on the complexity of the job, but we never work to a guessed figure. You'll have a fixed quote in hand before anything is committed to.
What happens next with your insurer
The Association of British Insurers estimates that escape of water costs insurers about £1.8 million in payouts every day, and water damage is usually covered as standard under buildings insurance, so most people calling us do have a claim available. Once we've pinpointed the leak, we can issue an insurance-approved trace and access report documenting what we found.
Price-comparison service Confused.com notes that trace and access cover pays to find the leak, access it, and make good the damage caused by the search itself, not the cost of repairing the pipe, and that policies commonly cover up to around £5,000 for this. Worth checking your policy wording so you know what's included before the visit, and keep any photos or invoices from the process.
Emergencies across Cornwall and Devon
We cover Cornwall and Devon as a local independent operation rather than a national franchise passing the job to a subcontractor, which matters most on the emergency calls: knowing that a granite cottage's thick walls behave differently under a thermal camera than a 1990s Plymouth semi, or that a coastal property's pipework has had a harder life from salt-laden air, changes how we approach the search. We see this most weeks through the wetter months, when old supply pipes and holiday-let systems that have sat idle both start to show their age.
Frequently asked questions
What number do I call for emergency leak detection?
Call 07822 025 911 to speak with us directly about a suspected leak anywhere in Cornwall or Devon. Our office line is 01752 741 998, or you can email hello@dcileakdetection.co.uk if it isn't urgent. Have your address, a rough sense of the problem, and any photos ready when you call.
Should I turn my water off before you arrive?
If water is actively escaping and you can see or hear it, turning off the stopcock is usually sensible and we will normally suggest this on the phone. If you are unsure where the stopcock is or the leak seems to be behind a wall with no visible water, wait for our guidance so you don't lose the ability to trace it while it's active.
How is a leak actually found once you arrive?
We start with a conversation and a visual check, then bring in non-invasive equipment as needed: FLIR thermal imaging to spot temperature differences, acoustic sensors and correlators to listen for the sound of escaping water, tracer gas for pressurised pipework, and calibrated moisture meters to confirm wet areas. The combination narrows the source before anything is opened up.
Is there a call-out fee for emergency leak detection?
No. We don't charge a call-out fee, and we give fixed, upfront pricing before any work starts, so you know the cost of the visit in advance. On residential leak detection we also work on a No Find, No Fee basis, subject to terms.
What if it turns out to be a gas leak, not water?
Leak detection specialists do not attend gas emergencies. If you can smell gas, leave the property, avoid switches and naked flames, and call the National Gas Emergency line on 0800 111 999 immediately rather than a leak detection firm.
Will you provide a report for my insurer?
Yes. Once the leak is pinpointed, we can provide an insurance-approved trace and access report setting out what we found and where, which supports a claim for the cost of finding and accessing the leak under most buildings insurance policies.
How quickly can someone come out?
Response depends on your location within Cornwall and Devon and how the day's diary looks, so the honest answer is to call and ask. Describing the problem clearly on the phone, including whether water is actively escaping, helps us judge priority accurately.
Water where it shouldn't be? Call us now
If you're dealing with a suspected leak anywhere in Cornwall or Devon, we'll talk you through what to do on the phone and get it pinpointed with minimal disruption once we're on site.
Call Dickie on 07822 025 911 No Find, No Fee on residential leak detection (subject to terms)