D.I.Y.

Usually, the homeowners are responsible for properly managing and maintaining their buildings. If you see a water seepage, you should immediately examine the location of the seepage by contacting the owners/occupants of the flat in question as soon as possible to schedule the repair work. 

Observe and record

First, you have to find out the seepage location. The most common areas of water leakage are the ceilings and the interior walls, so make sure to check them first. 

Once you have found out the exact location of the seepage, check for the timing of occurrence. It can be a continuous leakage from a broken pipe or conditional leakage like after rain. 

Now, check for the issues around the leakage area, which may include the extent of dampness, the odor, and the color of the wall. In case you aren’t able to understand the core of the issue, make sure to reach us at info@urbanroof.in. 

Sources of seepage/leakage & dampness:

To be honest, there can be a lot of things that may result in water seepage. Let’s discuss some of them:-

• Rainwater: Any living space can develop some cracks in the walls or even in the plasters. During monsoon, rainwater tends to seep through these cracks resulting in dampness.
• Plumbing fittings at exterior: There may be some issues in your plumbing at the exterior. From there the water can seep through the inner cracks resulting in intermittent or even continuous seepage.
• Other common places: Some other common seepage areas are the bathroom, kitchen, balcony tiles flooring, top terrace/ Roofs, and even window frame channel gaps. So try to examine them thoroughly. 

Signs Of Seepages 

1. Common Sources and Sign Of Seepage at Internal Walls

For water seepages, internal walls tend to suffer a lot more than the exterior. One of the common signs includes an increase in dampness around the adjacent walls. In some cases, you can also find some penetrating dampness at the ceiling wall corner junction from the upper flat bathroom. 

1. Common Sources and Sign Of Seepage at External Walls

There are a lot of reasons that can cause seepage in exterior walls. You may find some opened tile strip joints & junctions, or a damaged brick-bat coba. There can also be defective drainage pipes embedded in the floor slab or defective concealed water supply pipes embedded in the wall.

1. Common Sources and Sign Of Seepage at Ceiling

Most of the seepages that occur from the ceiling are generally due to the kitchen, toilet, or bathroom above the ceiling. This will most probably result in an intermittent seepage, causing a moldy seepage area with a stinky smell. You may go for a defensive water-proofing of the floor slab of the upper flat to deal with this type of problem. Usually, the bathroom seepages have a relatively larger seepage area with even dampness, and it can degrade the structural integrity of your walls over time.  

Another cause of ceiling seepages may be a leaking water supply pipe embedded in the floor slab of the upper flat. In case you see a greyish crystalline deposit at the seepage area, it generally indicates the presence of salt water.

Simple testing methods:

1. Drainage and waterproofing of slab color water and ponding test:

The color water test is a low-cost and reliable way to detect any flaws in sanitary fittings and drainage systems. If you go for a cleaner alternative, you can consider using a food dye. In this approach, the colored water will be acting as an indicator for any kind of seepage. In case you have more than one seepage, you can use different color dyes for the identification of different testing locations.

Process 

-First, dilute the color dye with about 10 liters of water. Fill the basin and water storage tank of the water closet with colored water and then discharge it.

-Now, use your dyed water to wet the connected area between the floor drain and concrete slab, and discharge that water into your outlet. Make sure to splash all junctions of the walls of the shower area and curbs with color water for a while and then discharge color water into the outlet.

-Plug the floor drain and cover the floor with a shallow color water ponding. After an hour unplug the outlet.

-The previous step is followed by plugging the outlet for the shower area, splash junctions with walls and curbs, cover the shower area with a shallow color water pond for 1 hour, and then unplug the outlet.

Observe the seepage area to see any signs of color water seepage as it may take 1 hour to 2 weeks for color water to seep through and appear on the ceiling.

1. Test For Leaked Water Supply Pipes 

For this test, you should install temporary precautionary measures such as water bags for surrounding furniture, electrical fittings, appliances, etc.

Process 

-Take note of the water drop count dripping at a clearly noticeable seepage spot on the ceiling for about 30 minutes.Turn off the main water supply as well as the taps to drain off water and release pressure within the water supply pipes.

-Record the number of water drops dripping at the selected spot again for 30 minutes.

-If the dripping rate slows down, it verifies that there is a leakage at the water supply pipes. After that, open the main water supply and turn off all the other faucets.

-And finally, check the count of water drops for that same location for 30 minutes. This process will confirm if there is seepage through the water supply pipes.