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Farrell Plumbing

Plumbing Price Guide

Leak Detection: what does it cost?

A clear look at the work, the price factors, and the questions to ask before you approve a plumbing job.

Start With The Price

What will the work cost?

A climbing water bill, a warm patch of floor, or water you can hear but cannot see. We investigate the source first, then explain what it will take to repair it.

The work behind the number

Ten completed residential plumbing-investigation invoices ranged from $175 to $550. The lower examples were limited or general investigations. They are not a promise to locate every slab leak for the same price. Permanent pipe repair is a separate scope.

What can change your price?

  • The suspected source: pressurized supply piping, a fixture, a drain, or another source of moisture.
  • The testing and access needed to narrow down the leak.
  • A limited investigation versus locating a concealed or under-slab leak.

Reviewed completed-job examples

$175–$550

Residential leak investigation, by scope

Planning range from reviewed work

10 completed jobs reviewed for this guide. Counts vary by scope. Scheduled July 24–September 11, 2026. Reviewed September 16, 2026.

These are historical examples of the work described here. They are not a guaranteed current quote or a price for every job in this category.

You approve a written price before work begins.

Behind The Price

Where this guidance comes from.

Reviewed completed-job examples

We checked the line items and totals of ten distinct completed residential leak-investigation jobs. Three limited/general investigations were $175 or $275; seven other investigations were $450–$550. These ten invoices contained no invoice-level discount and did not combine a separately charged permanent pipe repair. The work included visual inspections, pressure testing, acoustic or thermal investigation, and investigation of fixtures or other possible moisture sources where needed. We excluded a commercial locating job and a case focused mainly on windows and doors. This is a selected sample, not every completed job or an average. A low-end past investigation does not guarantee that price for a different locating problem. The findings and required scope determine your written proposal.

Scope: Ten completed residential plumbing-investigation invoices ranged from $175 to $550. The lower examples were limited or general investigations. They are not a promise to locate every slab leak for the same price. Permanent pipe repair is a separate scope.

10 distinct completed jobs reviewed for this guide.

Scheduled July 24–September 11, 2026.

Reviewed September 16, 2026.

Planning range from reviewed work.

Different work. Different price.

Limited or general investigation

$175–$275

Three reviewed residential invoices. The testing and findings were specific to those jobs; this is not a universal slab-leak locating price.

Other residential leak investigations

$450–$550

Seven reviewed invoices with different testing and access needs. Permanent repair was not a separately charged part of these invoices.

Repair after locating

See leak repair prices

A separate reviewed job charged $450 for detection and $660 for accessible pipe repair. The combined $1,110 was not detection alone.

What changes the price at your property?

  • The suspected source: pressurized supply piping, a fixture, a drain, or another source of moisture.
  • The testing and access needed to narrow down the leak.
  • A limited investigation versus locating a concealed or under-slab leak.

What the work covers.

  • The inspection and locating work described in your written proposal.
  • An explanation of the findings and the next step for any repair.

What may be separate.

  • Permanent pipe repair, major excavation, and finished-surface restoration unless listed.
  • A guarantee that every moisture problem can be reproduced or located during the visit.
  • An automatic detection-fee credit toward repair; confirm any credit in your written proposal.

Before you approve the work.

Make sure your written proposal explains the diagnosis, the work included, any separate items, and the total price. If something is unclear, ask. We want you to understand your options before you decide.

FAQs

Leak Detection pricing questions, answered.

Quick answers from our expert plumbers. Still have a question? Call our team and a real person will pick up.

01 Does leak detection include fixing the pipe?
The investigation and the permanent repair are different scopes. We explain any repair and its written price after the findings. Do not assume a temporary measure or a minor adjustment in one past job is included in every locating service.
02 Can every leak be located for $175?
No. That was a limited investigation in the reviewed sample. The testing, access, and suspected source determine the work needed at your property.
03 Will you have to break the floor just to look?
We use locating methods to narrow down the suspected leak before opening a surface. The next step depends on the findings and access to the pipe.
04 Is leak detection the same as a sewer camera inspection?
No. Water-line testing investigates the supply system. A sewer camera looks inside a drain or sewer line. We help you choose the right investigation.

Have a more specific question? Contact our team or give us a call.

Straight Answers On Price

Related work. Clearer numbers.

Prices cover the scope described in each guide. Your written estimate confirms the price before work begins.

Whole-House Repiping

$5,800–$14,800

Whole-house supply repipe with permit

Planning range from reviewed work

Reviewed completed-job line items

11 completed jobs reviewed for this guide. Counts vary by scope. · Scheduled January 28–September 10, 2026

Reviewed September 16, 2026

Read The Cost Guide

Leak Repair

$300–$2,800

Pipe repairs through more involved leak projects

Planning range from reviewed work

Reviewed completed-job examples

10 completed jobs reviewed for this guide. Counts vary by scope. · Scheduled July 7–September 8, 2026

Reviewed September 16, 2026

Our Plumbing Repair guide uses this same ten-job sample. The guides do not represent separate sets of projects.

Read The Cost Guide

Plumbing Repair

$300–$2,800

Selected pipe and leak-repair projects

Planning range from reviewed work

Reviewed completed-job examples

10 completed jobs reviewed for this guide. Counts vary by scope. · Scheduled July 7–September 8, 2026

Reviewed September 16, 2026

This guide uses the same ten completed jobs as our Leak Repair guide; they are not ten additional projects.

Read The Cost Guide

Understand the work before you approve the price.

Call Farrell Plumbing for a clear conversation about your plumbing problem and the next step toward a written quote.