Hi All
Been servicing swimming pools & spas in Perth, Australia for a few years, fitting vinyl liners and generally passing all my leak detection work on to a dedicated leak detector who isn’t prepared to do repairs.

Would like to add leak detection to my services which will assist in selling more liners and doing more leak repairs. I’m looking for feedback on the equipment you guys are using.

Regards Corey

welcome aboard. I think if you talk to ten different guys in this art, you will get ten different opinions. not all are going to fit what you do and how you do it.

First, you fit new liners, thats a good start. You can generated you own referals for both leak and liner replacements since you already have a head start. what exactly will you be doing in your leak detection? will you dive underwater to find leaks? Do you find leaks in plumbing lines? can you repair vinyl leak, concrete leaks, do you farm out your plumbing work to another company. So please tell us exactly what it is you plan on doing down under. Would like to help out all i can, but i will just give you my philosophy. others will vary

e mail me at trackerm@frontiernet.net

trackerm
Yes, do most repairs, patch and/or weld small holes, epoxy, pool putty for fiberglass Don't gel coat, concrete if very bad will recommend convert to vinyl liner, haven’t done concrete repairs. Will have a go at any repair when I know the location and whats involved to do the repair.

Would like to find my own leaks.

AquaLeak
Plane ticket is in the mail, have you heard that before
Perhaps I could ring you when I'm on site, around lunchtime Perth time would more than likely be in the middle of the night where you are

Hey Corey!

Here's what I found works best for me.

A customer calls looking to replace their liner (price shopping by phone) because they are losing water and they're convinced it's because of a hole. Instead of giving them a replacement price straight away, I offer to save them a substantial amount of money by performing an electronic liner scan. If, after the scan, they still want to replace the liner, I will credit the cost of the scan toward a liner replacement.

Here's the real kick! There have been many jobs where, after identifying the leaks and their cause, I've discovered that it is an insurance job! No cost to the customer (including the liner scan), with the exception of their deductable. You walk away not only with a check in hand, but looking like the hero to the customer!

I'm not talking any type of fraud here. I'm advocating finding ALL of the leaks (which can only be done electronically), identifying their source (to prevent further preventable damage from occuring), and having an understanding of what is and is not covered by homeowners insurance.

Either way, you'll be the first company in the yard, you're attempting to save them money, and you'll get first crack at the replacement job if it swings that way!

You're going to find that you'll need to be able to do pipeline leak detection as well, because they really do go hand-in-hand.

If you can't afford the whole package at once, my advice is to get the LeakTrac (which will pay for itself very quickly), and invest the money you get from those jobs back into other equipment that will expand your capabilities. It really snowballs from there!

Oh, and always be willing to learn!

Check your U2U box.

Best of luck!

~~John~~

The electronic leak detector isnt a bad machine. it has its pros and cons.

Pros, it will find a leak without entrance into the pool. Yes, human error is involved in technique in using the machine. the machine is only as good as its user. I know of a pool company that uses a leak trac device. Then, when they find the leak or leaks, they put a patch on a broom and lower the patch into the water onto the leak. I am not sure this is a good practice, its one I dont use. How does that company assure themselves and the pool owner that the patch is applied correctly and not leaking. The leak trac will be able to find a leak in cloudy or cold water. But I default back to still, someone needs to go into the water to verify the patch is applied correctly and not leaking with dye testing after application. I think the leak trac will just compliment a person who is able to dive the pool to do the correct underwater repair.

Leak detection is not all about diving and being able to place a patch. There are plenty of places leaks pop up. Behind the light in the niche, skimmers, stairs, returns, skimmer throat, pipes. etc... Anderson makes a wide variety to products to tackle all the leaks. There are mostly vinyl liners in my area, not much gunite. I know of a few guys just by finding their website that do gunite, rebar, delamination work. If there are a lot of pools in your area that are made like this, worth while looking into as far as you doing the repair.

Homeowners and pool owners, well, not all, but are for the most part unknowledage. NOT offending anyone here, just stating fact. One of the first questions I ask is HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU HAVE A LEAK. Then watch them talk a mile a minute. They will give you too much information so times. LOL.

If you are involved in plumbing repairs, then the geophone or electronic version is a definate. Pinpoint your leak, since you yourself are fixing it will avoid you digging up the whole length of pipe, saving time and money. I dont do plumbing repairs, so i farm that work back to a pool company that I do business with. I do pressure testing, but thats as far as i go with that.

Good luck in your leak detection. Since you are doing your own liners you should do great since people are going to call you in the first place about a liner replacement. Now you can give them a choice.

I have to agree with trackerm, although I'm sure that I'm a much bigger fan of the LeakTrac than he is.

There is a learning curve and, just as with any specialized equipment (shop tools, cars, diving gear), without some training and an understanding of what you are doing, it can be frustrating.

But just like those same specialized tools, proper use can lead to some very rewarding and exciting results (shop tools>building your own house, cars>LeMans, diving gear>Barrier Reef, LeakTrac>guaranteed results and increased income).

And, yes, you will need to be prepared to dive on the pool to perform any repairs and/or to do additional testing such as the light. For the limited environment of a swimming pool, Anderson's Hooka setup will do just fine (regulator w/ compressor), but I strongly recommended that LD's invest the time to get certified at some early stage in their growth as that improves their understanding of the dive gear, increases their comfort level of working underwater, allows them to get tanks filled or to rent scuba tanks, etc. One of the most unprofessional things I've seen was a company that used the LeakTrac to locate a leak in the fall, then the guy dove into the //COLD// water in his swimsuit (no gear, no weights, no air) and struggled to slap a patch on the hole quickly while his body was trying to float back to the surface...all on one gulp of air!

The customer was NOT impressed!

The "Patch on a broomstick" rates right up there as well!

As trackerm is suggesting, if you are going to start out as a professional, you need to finish up as a professional or just don't bother starting.

Welcome to the board...

You will find many varied opinions here, as everywhere else on this planet.
I am on my second leaktracker... Had the original 2100 and progressed to the wireless 2200. Best investment you will make. It does not find all pool leaks (plumbing, lights etc) but it its in the liner you will locate it. You will get readings from anything that is grounded but in a short amount of time you will learn to differentiate the sounds that you are hearing pretty well. You still have to manually test lights and skimmers but the LT will bring you right into a skimmer if its cracked and leaking. Also, if you want to get into plumbing leaks get a Fisher XLT... either model. A learning curve here, albeit short, and you will be able to get right above most underground leaks (with other necessary equipment) Your business is only limited by your imagination and your checkbook!
Enjoy!