Effective Leak Detection Strategies for Preventing Water Waste

Leaks can happen anytime, anywhere, through pipeline joints and fittings or, in the worst case, when a pipe bursts. No matter the cause, leaks in the water distribution network contribute to undesirable results, including lost revenue, increased labour, service interruptions and water waste.

Distribution network monitoring can provide you with the information you need to manage your assets and protect your investments. Managing leaks proactively is one way to get ahead of catastrophic maintenance issues, while conserving water in the process.

Leak detection plays an important role in minimising water losses and maintaining operational safety for water distribution networks. A strategic and thoughtful leak detection system that provides high-resolution and high-frequency data at regular intervals provides a more accurate picture of pipeline health than simple snapshots in time. This proactive approach supports preventative maintenance, which extends the life of assets by identifying potential issues before they become critical failures. Here are three things you should be considering for effectively managing leak detection within your network: 

Evaluate Acoustic Technologies 

As you evaluate leak detection technology for your utility, it’s important to know not all acoustic technologies are built the same. Any good acoustic sensor should be able to locate leaks using time-of-travel information. If you have two sensors, sound will travel simultaneously to each sensor. When it correlates, it determines how long it took to go to either one, ultimately helping pinpoint the leak. Also important is the option for continuous monitoring. Having the ability to leave a sensor on site means you’ll know right away when there’s a problem. If you must take the sensor after each visit, you become blind to the operations.

 Leverage Existing Assets for Optimal Sensor Placement

Leveraging existing assets, such as fire hydrants, air release valves (ARV) and pressure-reducing valves (PRV) are a great place to start. It’s important you consider the placement of your sensors as it can drastically impact the quality of the measured acoustic sample data. If leveraging existing assets doesn’t make sense within your network, you may even consider installing a new tap. This is especially helpful when deciding how to address a river crossing, which may be associated to a critical location in your distribution network. 

Get Granular for High-Resolution Data Means

With high-resolution data you no longer have to guess where to focus your efforts. This is important because you can now use this information to allocate resources to specific locations or areas that will have the most impact within your utility. When starting out with new software, make sure you have the most up-to-date information about your network assets available. To achieve actionable outputs, it is important to load in accurate data for pipe sizes, materials and lengths.

Leak reduction can also be achieved through a data-led network calming strategy. Reporting high-resolution pressure data at 128 samples per second enables intelligent pressure transient insights, including pressure waveform classification, smart event alarms and event source triangulation to identify bursts and causes of pressure transients for mitigation or removal.

As with many decisions, remember your employees when evaluating leak detection technologies. If a particular device or software platform can improve efficiency along the way, your utility operations will surely see a positive impact. Implementing an effective leak detection program is vital for water utilities to reduce water loss and enhance efficiency. Advanced acoustic technologies allow for quick identification of leaks, lowering costs and improving service. By prioritizing proactive monitoring, you can extend asset lifespan and demonstrate your commitment to water conservation and customer satisfaction. Take steps toward better leak detection today with BlueEdge™ from Badger Meter.