Call 0333 567 2615

Leak detection for high-street shops

Older buildings, shared walls, flats above and a fit-out that hides every pipe. We find the leak without wrecking the shop you spent money on.

Call 0333 567 2615

High-street units are rarely simple. Many are Victorian or older with pipework added in every decade since, a flat or office upstairs on a different lease, a cellar that floods, and a fit-out that boxed in the plumbing years ago. When a leak appears, the tempting fix is to start opening things up, and that is how a small leak becomes a closed shop and a ruined fit-out.

We locate the leak first. Thermal imaging, acoustic listening and tracer gas find the source behind panelling, under tiles and in the ceiling void, and moisture mapping tells you whether the damp is a leak at all or the building itself. The survey fits around your opening hours, and the report goes to your insurer and your landlord.

Where leaks hide in a high-street shop.

The usual suspects for this format, in the order we tend to find them.

The flat or office upstairs

Bathrooms and kitchens above the shop, on a separate lease. Their leak is your ceiling.

Boxed-in pipework

Supplies to the staff kitchen and WC run behind fitted joinery, under counters and inside display plinths.

Party walls and shared services

Water from next door’s downpipe or plumbing tracking through a shared wall.

Cellars and basements

Below-ground stock rooms with old lead or iron mains, defective tanking and drains that back up.

The rear extension roof

Flat felt roofs over the back of the shop, with blocked outlets and failed flashings against the main building.

Ageing incoming mains

Lead or iron supplies from the street that corrode and split under the pavement or the shop floor.

How we work on your premises.

The same non-invasive methods as every job, planned for the way this kind of premises actually runs.

  1. The shop carries on

    We need power and access to the pipework, and the shop can usually carry on trading around us.

  2. Nothing opened without evidence

    We only recommend an opening once two methods agree on the location. That protects the fit-out and keeps the repair small.

  3. Upstairs and next door included

    If the source is in another demise we say so, with the evidence, so you can take it to the landlord or the neighbour.

  4. Landlord and insurer both covered

    The report explains cause and location in terms both a managing agent and a loss adjuster accept.

What you get from a survey.

Every job ends with the same things: the location, the cause, the evidence and a report you can hand to someone else.

  • The leak located behind the fit-out without dismantling it
  • A clear answer on whether it is a leak, condensation or penetrating damp
  • Evidence that identifies another demise where that is the source
  • A report written for your insurer and your landlord
  • A same-visit repair where the job allows

High-street shops: your questions.

What managers in this sector ask before they book.

More questions
The ceiling is stained but the flat upstairs says nothing is wrong. What now?

We survey from below with thermal imaging and moisture mapping, then, with access, test the bathroom and kitchen above. The report will show where the water is coming from.

We cannot afford to close. How long does a survey take?

Most single-unit surveys are completed within the day and we attend outside opening hours where needed. The shop stays open.

Is it damp or is it a leak?

Moisture mapping and thermal imaging show the pattern. A leak produces a source and a spread; rising or penetrating damp has a different signature. We tell you which.

Will you damage the shop fit-out?

No. Detection is non-invasive. If a small inspection opening is essential we agree it with you first and keep it to the confirmed spot.

Who pays if the leak is from the flat upstairs?

That depends on the leases and the insurance in place. What we provide is the evidence of source and route, which is what the parties need to sort it out.

Related services.

Washrooms & staff areas

Customer toilets, staff kitchens and cleaners’ cupboards. Small rooms with a lot of pipework, and the source of most damp patches next door.

Find out more

Damp & structural ingress

Penetrating damp, basement stock rooms and party walls. Moisture mapping shows what is a leak and what is condensation.

Find out more

Roof & ceiling leaks

Flat roofs, rooflights, box gutters and drips from the unit above. We trace the water back to where it gets in, which is rarely where it shows up.

Find out more

Water mains & underground

Supply pipes under car parks, service yards and slab floors. The usual suspect behind a water bill that has quietly doubled.

Find out more

Speak to the team about your leak.

One call gets a leak engineer moving. Our methods are non-invasive, so there is usually nothing to dig up, and you get a written report ready for your insurer.

Call 0333 567 2615

Engineers across England, Scotland and Wales. £5 million public liability insurance.