Internal Pipes Leaking Into Outer Walls

[darryl 0]

Hi all, i did a search and found this forum really useful but i have a slightly different case and hope to gather some feedback to position my case better (or worst )

i owned a private property and i stay on the 3rd floor and recently i was notified by the bldg mgmt that my outer wall (between my kitchen and common bath) is seeping water thru a visible crack and is affecting the appearance of the condo. They requested that i engage a plumber to investigate and possibly fix but since the pipe is within the walls and i cannot do anything to damage or prevent the leaks, i am wondering if i am liable for this.

If i am liable, can i perhaps share the cost 50/50 with the bldg mgmt given it's common property.

So far i have engaged 2 opinions from 2 plumbers and they all cannot ascertain where the leak is? Wouldnt the bldg mgmt have better access to the blueprint perhaps to know where instead of just passing the whole burden to me?

appreciate any advice.

cheers,

darryl

[santav 0]

hi darryl,

i had a similar problem when i lived in my previous condo. in my case, the leaked wall was within my premise although it doesn't mean the leak was my responsibility. however, since it's an encased pipe, i had no choice but to hack part of the wall (within my unit). before hacking, my contractor drilled trial holes to try to determine the approximate location of the leak. once that's determined, localised hacking was done to repair the leak. luckily for me, the estate was due for repainting, hence, i wasn't held liable to made good the damaged done to the exterior painting.

incidentally, my ex-colleague who's residing in a 10yrs old estate has also encountered leakage from water pipes encased within his unit's toilet wall recently. so it seems, sure problems will be part and parcel of condo living as opposed to hdb where all pipeworks are exposed.

[yoongf 11]

http://www.bca.gov.sg/BMSM/others/strata_living.pdf

[Warrior88 0]

Guest toilet water leaks... same thing contractor says must hack wall....blah,

how much ? don't know depends on where leaks...em...around $2000 lah....

Next, since there are 2 pipes coming in ( 1 hot , 1 cold )

I shut down the hot water tap and check the next day, sure it must be the hot water pipe.

3 options

1. Hack the wall, make good

2. Make a new tap at the hot water side to stop the water ( no hot water lah .. )

3. Proceed with 2, reconnect exposed hot water pipe direct to mixer tap