SOMEONE PLEASE help me!! Major plumbing misdiagnosis

[Misty Landry]

4 days ago on Friday, I came home from work and could hear running water in my pipes. I checked in the house and nothing was on. I called my husband, who told me to give a call to our builder, since its a new home and we're still under warranty. The foreman came out and inspected, and then called the plumber. He and the plumber then came and told me that they believed it was a slab leak. So the plumber then referred us to a slab leak detection company that charged $250 the first hour, $150 for each additional hr. The builder stated if there was a slab leak, he would pay for everything. Slab leak company came out on Monday and was there for 2 hours and stated they would have to come back with a jackhammer the following day. Company comes out today, cuts out drywall in bathroom and garage, tears up concrete in garage, is there for 2 hours and tells us that there is no slab leak...that our water faucet with hose had been turned on somehow... OMG. So what now??? Is the builder's plumber responsible at all, or are we out 1k for the work and repairing all the tear up... for no reason? I feel sick to my stomach over all of this.

 

[Dj2]

Is the house still under builder's warranty?
If yes, your next move: a real estate lawyer, for consultation.

BTW, do you still hear that running water sound now? Can you hear a sound when the main is shut off? Can you spot a leak anywhere? What exactly is that water faucet with a hose? Is it a washing machine hose?

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Misty Landry]

Thanks for the reply. Yes, we are under warranty until December. No sound when the water is shut off. It was the outside water faucet on the left side of the house. The water was putting out 3 gph, and you could hear water running in pipes in the downstairs bathroom, which is next to the hot water tank. All this work, and it was simply someone had turned on an outside water faucet that had garden hose on it. They are building homes next to us, and we think the workers could have possibly used the outside hose for some reason while we were at work. I just can't believe that between the foreman, and the 2 plumbers, no one realized it was just an outside garden hose on. We have not had water since Friday because they turned it off to prevent more damage from the "slab leak "

 

[hj]

You had a MEDIOCRE leak detection company. A GOOD one would have know EXACTLY where the leak was, especially if it was NOT under the slab. AND, most do NOT look for the leak themselves, but rather tell the plumber where it is, so you must have had a plumber with a stethescope looking for the leak. I am not sure WHO pays for the misdiagnosis and repairs, but it should be the leak detection company, but "good luck" with that.

 

[Plumber69]

That's bad. You, builder, plumber, leak detection couldn't find a outside hose running