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Before You Dig: Underground Utility Location

Utility Location Scan Know Before You Dig

Before You Dig: Underground Utility Location

  • March 14, 2022

Before starting any digging or excavation work, it’s important to know exactly what’s underground. Hitting a buried service is rarely good news – and it certainly won’t be buried treasure. Striking power cables, water lines, or fibre can be costly, dangerous, and disruptive. The good news is, with the right planning and professional help, these incidents are almost always avoidable.

At The Leak Detection Company, we use a range of advanced locating technologies, including Electro-Magnetic Location (EML)and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), to accurately trace and mark underground utilities. The best method depends on the type of asset (metal, concrete, plastic, etc.) and the ground conditions, so having the right equipment – and the expertise to use it – makes all the difference.

Locating Underground Power Lines

Live power cables produce a strong magnetic field, which can be detected by an electromagnetic receiver. While they’re often the easiest utilities to detect, they can also mask the presence of other services nearby. This is one reason why relying on DIY hire equipment is risky – a professional locator can identify all buried services, not just the obvious ones.

Locating Underground Water Lines

We use a combination of EML, GPR, and acoustic pipe locating to trace water lines on a property. With our Pulse Wave Generator (PWG), we send a sound signal down the line from an outlet or tap, allowing us to follow its path and find the exact location. This same technology is a key part of our leak detection service.

Locating Underground Drainage Pipes

Drainage pipes may be made from steel-reinforced concrete or PVC, and we tailor our approach to the material. Options include GPR scanning from the surface or inserting a traceable fibreglass rod into the pipe and tracking it using electromagnetic induction.

Locating Underground Fibre Cables

Fibre cables don’t contain metal, so they don’t emit a detectable magnetic field. If no tracer wire was installed with the cable, we use GPR to locate them without digging.

Public vs Private Utilities

A common misconception is that all underground services belong to the council or utility company. In reality, public utilities (such as mains power or water) can run under private land, while private utilities (connections from your home to the mains) are your responsibility. These include:

  • House power cables and outdoor lighting circuits

  • Gas lines

  • Septic tanks and pipes

  • Irrigation and water feature plumbing

  • Shed or garage power supplies

  • Stormwater drains

It’s not unusual for old, unused lines to remain buried and unknown to the current property owner – until someone digs into them.

Why choose the Leak Detection Company?

Before you dig, we can carry out a thorough site survey to find both public and private utilities on your property. Our goal is to make your excavation work safer, faster, and compliant with safety regulations.

Call The Leak Detection Company today to book your underground utility location survey anywhere in the Waikato.

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Terms & Conditions

Disclaimer – Please Read Before Engagement

This agreement outlines the terms under which The Leak Detection Company provides underground water leak detection services to the person or organisation engaging us (“you”).

You acknowledge that our services are designed to assist with the identification of potential underground water leaks and buried services. While The Leak Detection Company utilises the latest technology and industry-accepted best practices for underground leak detection, we cannot guarantee a detection survey will result in the positive location of any/all leaks. This is subject to several factors that are out of our control, including but not limited to ground conditions, external noise sources, pipe/leak depth and leak size/volume. 

No assurance can be given about the exact location of any underground leak or utility identified by The Leak Detection Company. The only way to confirm any such finding is through visual verification. (Refer: AS 5488.1.2019 – Subsurface Utility Engineering (SUE), Quality Level A).

The accuracy of our detection tools and techniques can vary. Any positions or depths indicated should not be considered exact. You are responsible for confirming all positions and depths using hand digging or hydro excavation methods prior to any mechanical excavation.

The Leak Detection Company accepts no responsibility for any damage, disruption, or harm caused to underground services, or for any injury, financial loss, or other consequences resulting from such incidents—whether affecting you or any other party such as contractors, owners, customers, service providers, councils, or others. You agree to fully indemnify The Leak Detection Company against all such claims, damages, and associated costs.

If, despite the above, any liability does arise on the part of The Leak Detection Company (in contract, tort, or otherwise), that liability will be limited to the total amount paid by you for our services. We are not liable for loss of income, contracts, business opportunities, or any indirect or consequential damages.

These limitations and protections extend to all staff, agents, officers, and contractors of The Leak Detection Company.

You acknowledge that this document forms the entire agreement between you and The Leak Detection Company, and no other terms, representations, or assurances—unless documented here—are part of the agreement.

Payment Terms

  • Non-account holders: Payment is due immediately upon completion of the job or site visit. Payment can be made on-site by cash, EFTPOS, or credit card, unless prior arrangements have been made.

  • Account holders: Payment is due by the 20th of the month following the invoice date.

  • Overdue accounts: A 25% interest fee will be added, and a new invoice issued. Any costs incurred in recovering the debt will be charged to the account holder.

Bank Account for Payment:
ASB – 12-3456-7890-01

Any concerns or disputes about an invoice must be raised with The Leak Detection Company within 7 days of either the site visit or receipt of the invoice.