Hear Running Water in the Walls When Nothing Is On? What It Means in a Laguna Beach Home and What to Check
A faint hiss or trickle inside a wall when every tap is off can be a toilet refilling, or a pipe leaking where you cannot see it. How to tell the difference in Laguna…
It usually happens at night, when the house is quiet. You hear a soft hiss, a trickle or a faint rushing sound in a wall, but nothing is running. Sometimes it is harmless. Sometimes it is the only early warning you will get about a hidden leak.
Common harmless causes
- A toilet refilling because the flapper lets water seep into the bowl
- An irrigation system or a neighbor's water use in an attached home
- A water heater refilling after someone used hot water
- An ice maker or water softener cycling
Signs it may be a leak
- The sound is steady and does not stop after a few minutes
- It is louder near one wall, closet or floor area
- Your water meter moves when everything is off
- The water bill has climbed without a change in use
- You notice a damp patch, bubbling paint or a musty smell
A simple check
- Turn off every fixture and appliance that uses water, including irrigation.
- Put a few drops of food coloring in each toilet tank and wait to see if color shows up in the bowl.
- Look at the water meter and note the reading or watch the leak indicator.
- Wait without using water and check again.
If the meter moves and the toilets are not the cause, water is going somewhere it should not. The next step is professional leak detection, which can locate a leak in a wall or under a slab with acoustic and thermal tools before anything is opened.
Laguna Beach homes and hidden leaks
Laguna Beach housing ranges from 1920s and 1930s cottages in Laguna Village and the downtown area to mid-century homes in Bluebird Canyon and hillside houses in Top of the World and Arch Beach Heights. Many have galvanized or older copper lines, sometimes with sections repaired over the years. Steep lots and tight crawl spaces can let a slow leak go unnoticed for a long time. Water comes from Laguna Beach County Water District, with South Laguna served by South Coast Water District.
When the answer is a repipe
One leak in a wall can be repaired. If leak detection turns up more than one problem, or the pipe around the leak is thin and corroded, a PEX-A repipe ends the cycle. We plan access to protect original finishes, run new lines, and get the work inspected through the City of Laguna Beach.
Related reading
If your home has older copper, read about lead solder in copper pipes or see whether your water heater leaking from the bottom is a tank problem or a pipe problem. Neighbors can visit Laguna Niguel, Newport Beach and Aliso Viejo, or see every city we serve at repipeinc.com.
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Repipe OC, 23821 Hillhurst Drive, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677, (949) 524-2362, CSLB #1087885 C-36.
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Written by Repipe OC · CSLB #1087885 C-36 · 23821 Hillhurst Drive, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677 · (949) 524-2362