DIYbanter - View Single Post - Repairing a Hydronic floor heating system

Speedy Jim

wrote:

I have a Concrete slab home that was built in 1954. i was outside the
other day and observes some wettness on my block foundation. i think
one of my radiant floor heat pipes is leaking. does anyone know if
there is a way to pinpoint the location of a leak? i do not want to
think of removing my entire concrete slab and having to reinstall
tubing and pour a new slab. I do want to figure out how to make the
repair because i never want to give up the floor heat.

please help

Hmmmmmm Half a century of copper tube embedded in hostile
concrete? Folks would say that's end-of-life.

OK. You're committed to salvaging it.

As a first step- shut off the boiler feedwater and see if the
pressure begins to drop (over a period of days, maybe).
Refill the boiler manually to get some idea of the magnitude
of loss. That will establish that you have a hydronic leak
(or not).

There are many hi-tech instruments today for measuring
moisture content by probing the surface. If you can
pinpoint the spot, then what?

Inject a product like "Stop Leak" into the system?
That may be effective at least short term in plugging
pin holes.

A corrosion-inhibitor mixed with the boiler water *might*
help, but only if the corrosion is from within and not
on the outside. (I'm not a corrosion engineer.)

My take on this is that you are shoveling against the tide.
I would be making a plan for some alternate heating method
while plugging the leaks.

Jim