In short
Finding and fixing leaks in buried pipe: the service line, sprinkler mains and lines to outbuildings.
Finding it
- Meter check. Everything off. If the leak indicator turns, water is escaping.
- Split the system. Close the irrigation valve, then the house valve, watching the meter after each.
- Trace the line across the yard.
- Pinpoint with listening equipment or tracer gas.
- Fix it at the mark.
Red clay and buried leaks
The Georgia Piedmont's red clay holds water close to the surface, so a leak often makes a muddy strip that never dries. On sloped lots the water follows the pipe trench downhill and comes up away from the break. Where the clay sits on rock, digging slows down, which is another reason to pinpoint before opening the ground.
Questions
Is a hidden leak urgent?
Rarely on day one, but it never stops on its own, and it keeps adding to your bill.
Related
Water line repairRepairing the buried pipe on your side of the DeKalb meter: the break is located, a small…Main line replacementLaying a new service line from the DeKalb meter to the house, by trench or by boring, and…Galvanized pipe replacementReplacing an aging galvanized steel service line on the owner's side of the meter with…Burst line helpUrgent repair of a service line that has split or pulled apart, after the water has been…
Sources: DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management service line ownership sheet, lead and copper FAQ and 2026 galvanized pipe notices; Atlanta News First, 15 January 2025; City of Decatur news release, 14 January 2025.
