The Bucket Test
Place a bucket of pool water on the steps. Mark the levels inside and outside the bucket. After 24 hours, if the pool has dropped more than the bucket, the difference is your leak rate.
Topical Authority Hub
Pool Leak Detection — The Complete Guide
Why pools lose water, how to tell evaporation from a real leak, what to check yourself, and when to bring in proper detection. Everything HydroTrace has on pool plumbing, structural leaks, underground lines and pressure testing — in one place.
The Basics First
Evaporation vs Real Leak
In Gauteng, normal pool evaporation is 5-10 mm per day in summer, less in winter. If you're losing more than that, something else is happening.
Pump-On vs Pump-Off
If the pool loses more water with the pump running, the leak is likely on the pressure (return) side. If it loses more with the pump off, the leak is likely on the suction or structural side.
The Dye Test
Coloured dye released near suspect fittings — skimmer, light, main drain, returns — shows whether water is being drawn into a leak. Cheap, effective for visible leak points.
Where Pool Leaks Hide
Three Types Of Pool Leak
Plumbing Leaks
Failures on the suction and return lines that run between the pool and the pump room. Often buried under paving, lawn or pool surrounds. Located using pressure testing on isolated lines and acoustic methods at the surface.
Structural / Shell Leaks
Cracks, gaps at fittings, failing tile-line grout, weeping balance tanks. Visible during dye testing but sometimes very small — and getting bigger every week they go unaddressed.
Equipment Leaks
Pump seals, multiport valves, filter housings and pipe connections in the pump room. The easiest type to find but often missed because owners assume the leak must be in the pool.
Why It Matters
What An Untreated Pool Leak Costs
- Hundreds of kilolitres of municipal water per year — directly billable
- Chlorine, salt and stabiliser flushed away with the lost water
- Saturated paving and pool surrounds — eventually lifting and cracking the deck
- Soil washout under the pool shell — eventually causing structural movement
- Damage to nearby walls and foundations from migrated moisture
R1,650Call-out from (residential)
24-48hInsurance-ready report
24/7Emergency commercial line