The plumbing that carries water between your pool, pump, and filter runs underground, often under decking or landscaping. When a line cracks or a joint separates, water escapes into the soil where you can't see it. These leaks can run for weeks before they're noticed, wasting water and slowly washing away the ground that supports your deck. Our job is to find the break and fix it without tearing up more of your yard than necessary.
What an underground plumbing leak is
Pool plumbing is made of PVC lines that run from the skimmers and main drain to the pump, and from the filter back to the returns. A leak happens when a pipe cracks, a fitting separates, or a line is damaged by shifting soil, tree roots, or age. Because the lines are buried, the water often disappears into the ground without leaving a visible puddle — especially in Cooper City's sandy soil, which drains quickly.
Signs of an underground plumbing leak
- Air bubbles in the pump basket or return jets, pointing to a suction-side break
- Wet or soft patches in the lawn or deck near the plumbing path
- The pool losing water only when the pump runs, or only when it's off
- A drop in pump pressure or the equipment losing prime
- A higher water bill with no other explanation
Why South Florida pools get plumbing leaks
Sandy soil shifts more than compact clay, and South Florida's wet-to-dry seasonal swings make that movement worse. A high water table keeps the ground saturated in summer, then it shrinks in dry months, stressing buried lines. Tree roots near the plumbing path can also press on and crack older PVC. Pools built decades ago often have lines that are simply reaching the end of their service life.
How we find an underground leak
Underground leaks don't show up in a visual inspection, so we rely on methods designed for buried lines:
- Pressure testing — we isolate each line, pressurize it with air or water, and watch whether it holds. A line that won't hold pressure has a break somewhere along its run.
- Listening equipment — once we know a line is leaking, we use a sensitive listening device along the line's path to hear the exact spot where water is escaping under pressure.
- Targeted exposure — we only open the ground at the confirmed break point, keeping digging to a minimum.
What repair usually involves
Once the break is located, we expose just that section, cut out the damaged pipe or fitting, and replace it with new PVC. The line is re-pressurized to confirm the repair holds, the trench is backfilled, and the surface is restored as closely as possible. If a line has multiple breaks or is badly deteriorated, we'll explain the option of replacing the full run.
When to call us
If your pool loses water in a pattern tied to the pump running, you see air in the pump basket, or you find soft ground along the plumbing path, don't wait. Underground leaks erode the soil under your deck and can lead to settling or cracked decking over time. The earlier we find the break, the smaller the repair.