Emergency Leak Investigation and Repaired Leaking Commercial Water Heater in Fallbrook, CA

A property management company called ASAP Drain Guys & Plumbing during after hours because their property in Fallbrook, Ca had a 100 gal gas water heater leaking from the bottom. It is located in the laundry room.

Upon arrival, the technician accessed the laundry room adjacent to unit 5 and found the flooring flooded due to unknown leak source. Per the work order from the property manager, ASAP was to perform a leak investigation and do what ever necessary to repair the leak. The ASAP technician checked the existing 100 gallon commercial water heater in laundry room for any sign of leakage and all visible copper piping. He did not find the source of the leak. The technician accessed unit 5 with tenant’s permission and was directed to the closet in the bedroom. The carpeted bedroom, hallway, and closet were soaking wet due to unknown leak. The technician used a laser thermometer to get temperature readings with the flooring registering 110 degrees Fahrenheit in both the laundry room (behind water heater) and unit 5 closet. He called the on-site manager for permission to open the drywall inside of closet of unit 5 to access piping inside wall cavity and to determine if leak is below or above the concrete slab.

The on-site manager gave the technician authorization to open drywalls. He opened the drywall and exposed hot side manifold and found the leak source: a pinhole leak on 3/4” hot side copper piping approximately 4” above concrete slab inside the wall cavity. He notified on site manager of findings and that a temporary repair will be performed to stop the leak. The permanent repair was performed the following morning. The technician performed the temporary repair and restored hot water service to building.