Your leak detection has indicated that there is a leak in a pipe that runs under your patio. This isn’t uncommon. If the pipe meets the criteria for sealing with a 2-part coagulant, you can get to repairing underground pool pipe leaks with PipeFuze. First, let’s see what the leak is all about.
You’ll have to isolate the line to test how much pressure it’s holding:
This means both ends of the pipe have to be accessible. You’ll have one side of the pipe plugged and the other side will have a pressure rig attached with a pressure gauge that will indicate how much pressure is escaping the pipe. By adding a reasonably small amount of pressure, just 8-12 lbs, you get the gauge to hold steady and watch the needle drop.
How much pressure is it losing?:
If your pipe is revealing that the loss of pressure is in the range of 5lbs or under over the course of 30 seconds, you can start repairing underground pool pipes with the 2-part Pipe Fuze liquid set.
Circulating Part A:
You’re going to create a circuit of water through the pipe using a plastic bin and a pump. Fill the barrel half-way with water and set the pressure low to circulate through the pipe. Again, a standard hose pressure of 8-12 pounds I more than enough to circulate water through the line. The goal is to circulate the viscous liquid and particulate in the Part A bottle through the line so it can be pulled into the leak as it passes. The liquid that flows past the leak will run out the end of the pipe and through the return rig, bringing it back into the bucket for re-circulation.
See the process below:
As the contents of Part A work to fill the crack or hole in the line, they will begin to block water from escaping. This may take a couple of hours. Once they fill the hole, the pressure in the line should stabilize. You can perform another pressure test to see if the line is still dropping pressure. If it’s decreased, but not completely, continue to circulate the particulate of Part A. So long as you can see it’s still in the bucket, the pump will continue to deliver it to the area of the leak.
Circulating Part B:
When your pressure is holding in the pipe, Part A will already be adhering to the outside of the pipe. As water is no longer flowing through the leak, the backside will be adhering to form a bond. On the inside of the pipe, as water continues to flow, circulate Part B into the line. The process of the two mixtures blending will begin to harden the viscous Part A fluid that has penetrated the crack and the clogged area of the leak will become permanent. Circulate Part B for 2 hours.
How long is it going to last?
Truthfully, we don’t know. The reason being, in the time we’ve been producing and using PipeFuze, there hasn’t been a call telling us that it’s failed. To give it an end date isn’t possible because to this day, no one has said the PipeFuze repair failed and created another leak, so as of now, there is no end date to how long PipeFuze lasts. It’s a permanent patch for pipes losing 5 lbs of pressure or less over the course of 30 seconds. Repairing underground pool pipe leaks with PipeFuze is a permanent solution to stop water loss without digging or breaking concrete to make repairs.
