Why Rita Ranch homes get slab leaks and hidden leaks
Rita Ranch is a master-planned community on Tucson's southeast side, along Houghton Road south of Interstate 10, in ZIP code 85747. The City adopted the area plan in 1986, and most of the building followed after the land was bought for development in 1991. The homes are a generation newer than much of central Tucson, and they were built by production builders in large phases.
That has 3 practical effects on leak detection:
- The foundations are concrete slabs. There's no crawl space. A leak in a line under the floor has to be located from above.
- Houses on the same street are often plumbed the same way. Builders repeated floor plans and plumbing layouts. If a neighbor with the same model has had a slab leak in a particular spot, that's worth telling us. That's a useful lead.
- The plumbing is reaching the age where first failures appear. A home built in the 1990s has pipe, valves, and fittings around 30 years old. Supply lines, pressure regulators, and water heater connections from that period are due for attention.
Leak detection services we provide in Rita Ranch
Slab leak detection
Signs are a warm area on a tile floor, the sound of water with everything off, a water heater that seems to run all day, or damp carpet along a wall. We isolate the hot and cold sides, trace the line, and mark the spot. Details are on our slab leak detection page.
Drip irrigation leaks under rock yards
Front and back yards here are mostly gravel with drip-watered shrubs and trees. A break in the buried mainline or a valve that doesn't close can run for months with nothing showing on the surface.
Rabbits and other desert wildlife chewing on drip tubing is a regular cause on the edges of the community. See irrigation leak detection.
Swimming pool leak detection
Many homes have a backyard pool with an autofill. If the autofill is running constantly, do a bucket test before assuming it's evaporation. See pool leak detection.
High water bill leak checks
When nothing is visibly wrong, the search starts at the meter. Our high water bill leak check works through the house, irrigation, and pool until the source is found.
Leak detection for Rita Ranch rentals and absentee owners
Rita Ranch is close to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, and many military families live here. A fair number of homes are rented out by owners who have been posted elsewhere. That creates a familiar problem: the tenant sees the bill or the damp floor, and the owner, who has to authorize the work, is in another state.
If that's your situation, here's how to keep it simple. Tenants should do the meter test, take photos of the meter and any damage, and send them to the owner or property manager right away.
Owners and managers can call us directly, and we can explain what we find by phone once the visit is done. An owner who can't be on site gets a clear finding and can then get repair quotes from any plumber.
How we locate a leak in a Rita Ranch home
We measure the loss at the meter, close the house valve and the irrigation shutoff in turn to see which system is responsible, and then pinpoint the leak with acoustic equipment, thermal imaging, or tracer gas, depending on the pipe. The spot is marked and explained. Leak Detective doesn't make repairs.
If your home is in an HOA, check the rules before repair work that affects the front yard or a shared wall. Detection itself doesn't disturb anything. For a wider view of the methods and what a visit involves, see our main page on Tucson leak detection.
Leak detection questions from Rita Ranch residents
I am a tenant. Can I call for leak detection myself?
You can call to ask questions, but the property owner or manager normally needs to authorize the visit. Do the meter test, take photos, and contact them first. It speeds everything up.
Are slab leaks common in homes built in the 1990s and 2000s?
They're less common than in homes from the 1970s, but they do occur as pipe and fittings pass the 30-year mark. The signs are the same: a meter that moves with everything off, a warm floor, or the sound of running water.
My neighbor with the same floor plan had a slab leak. Should I be worried?
Not worried, but aware. Do a meter test a couple of times a year.
If it holds still, your lines aren't leaking. If you ever need detection, tell us where the neighbor's leak was, because the plumbing layout may match.
The yard is all rock. How would I know the drip system is leaking?
With no zones running, close the irrigation shutoff valve and watch the meter. If the meter was moving and stops when the irrigation is shut off, the irrigation mainline or a valve is leaking.