Thermal Imaging Camera Locates Cracked Pipe in Wall

By Roberto Rinaldi
ITC Italy
Thermal imaging is becoming an important part of building applications because it is non-invasive and fast to perform. A thermal imaging camera is being used today for heat loss, disbanding tiles, locating hidden structures, air leakage, subsurface roof moisture, peeling plaster and moisture in wall. 
There are many other building applications with the use of a thermal imaging camera. Sometimes all you need is the right moment to perform the inspection with a thermal imaging camera.  For instance, by waiting for solar radiation to create the necessary thermal contrast, or arranging the heating by using a big hot air gun or a set of lamps.  Greater differences in temperature yield clearer thermal imaging photos.
In this case I used my thermal imaging camera to look for a rather large leak from the main discharge pipe of my flat (apartment) that had caused the wall in the basement to become completely soaked. The affected area was rather large, and would have been expensive to replace if I had not pinpointed the problem area.  The large area made it particularly difficult to find the problem pipe with my thermal imaging camera.  To create the necessary thermal contrast, I used hot water from the plumbing.  This way, my thermal imaging camera can detect the temperature difference much more clearly.
 
Thermal imaging photo and visual evidence of the leak
I decided to check the pipe position from the external side of the building with my thermal imaging camera so I could locate the region to start breaking the wall. Here is the result:
 
The pipe is located with my thermal imaging camera
I was able to use my thermal imaging camera to locate the pipe position by measuring the distance from the side of the window. Unfortunately, the pipe was buried where an internal wall existed.
If I exposed the pipe from the outside, I needed to open a main wall and remove part of the external pavement; from the inside I needed to remove part of an internal wall and part of a main wall.
So thinking a bit, I decided to use an old inspection gate to work under the floor without having to remove it or break into an internal wall. It was really hard, but the result was excellent!

Crack found at elbow
Thanks to my thermal imaging camera, I was able to save time, money and most importantly, avoid the huge amount of exploratory "digging and destroying" otherwise necessary to locate the pipe by conventional means.