Balcony Leak Detection Melbourne
1300 FINDLEAK finds where a leaking balcony is letting water in, without ripping up the tiles first. We test the door sill, sliding door track, drains, membrane, balustrade fixings and grout one at a time with thermal imaging, moisture mapping, flood, spray and dye tests, then give you a photo report your owners corporation, builder or insurer can act on. Balcony leak detection in Melbourne is $398 inc. GST for the first hour, with a 24/7 phone line.
Balcony leaking right now?
- Clear the balcony drain and any overflow: sweep away leaves, dirt and anything sitting over the outlet.
- Move pot plants, planter boxes and furniture away from the door and walls so water can drain.
- Put towels along the inside of the sliding door track and protect floors or carpet near the door.
- If water is coming through a ceiling below, keep clear of light fittings and switch that circuit off if it's safe to do so.
- Take photos and note when it leaks (heavy rain, wind from one direction, or when the balcony above is hosed). Tell your owners corporation or neighbour if another unit is affected.
Then call 1300 346 353, 24/7. We'll book the inspection and tell you what we'll need to test.
Before you re-waterproof the whole balcony
Most people searching for balcony waterproofing are about to pay for a full strip-out and new membrane. Often the membrane isn't the problem. Water also gets in at the sliding door sill and track, around the drain, through balustrade post fixings, under divider walls, through cracked grout, or where tiles are butted against cladding. A new membrane doesn't fix any of those.
In a review of 245 of our completed leak reports, balcony, terrace and podium problems were the most common cause we found: 31% of reports. And 58% of all reports found more than one cause, which is why we test every likely path instead of stopping at the first defect. Finding the exact entry point first means you only pay to fix what's actually failing.
Balcony leaks we find
Door sills and sliding door tracks
Water pooling at the door, a track that fills in heavy rain, or a sill with no upturn behind it. It shows up as swollen skirting, damp carpet or cupping timber floors just inside the door. We map the moisture and flood-test the track to prove it.
Drains, outlets and membranes
A blocked or punctured drain, an overflow set too high, falls that send water back to the door, or a membrane missing at the edges. On pedestal paver balconies we lift a few pavers to check the drain and membrane underneath, then put them back.
Leaks into the unit or car park below
A stain or drip in the ceiling under a balcony, or water running down a car park wall. Timed flood tests, spray tests along door frames and balustrades, and coloured dye let us tell the balcony apart from a window, a shower or a pipe in the slab.
Balcony leak detection cost in Melbourne
Balcony leak detection
- Thermal imaging and moisture mapping inside and below the balcony
- Flood, spray and dye tests, one zone at a time
- Leak source marked and explained on the day
- Written photo report for your owners corporation, builder or insurer
Additional hour
Only if testing needs longer, for example several balconies, or flood tests that need extra time to show.
Found or you don't pay*
*If we can't find the leak, you don't pay for the inspection. Ask for details when you book.
Prices are for metropolitan Melbourne. Regional areas are priced by travel time. See the balcony leak detection price and all our leak detection prices.
How it works
Tell us what you're seeing
Call or book online. Tell us where the water shows up and when: every rain, only in wind-driven rain, or when the balcony above is cleaned.
Scan before we wet anything
A thermal and moisture survey of the room, ceiling or car park below gives us a dry baseline and shows where water is spreading.
Test one zone at a time
Door track, sill, drain, balustrade, walls and tiles are tested separately with water and dye, so each result points to one source.
Mark it and report it
We show you the entry point, explain the cause and email a photo report. Your builder, waterproofer or owners corporation can fix the right spot, or ask us to quote the repair and we'll book a return visit.
Signs of a leaking balcony and what usually causes them
| Sign | Likely cause | How we find it |
|---|---|---|
| Damp carpet, swollen skirting or lifting timber floor inside the balcony door | Door sill or sliding door track letting water in, or no membrane upturn behind the sill | Moisture mapping inside, then a flood test of the door track |
| Stain or drip on the ceiling of the unit below | Membrane failure, a punctured drain or a gap at the perimeter | Timed flood test of the balcony, with thermal scans below |
| Rust stains or cracking around balustrade posts | Post fixings and screws not sealed, letting water straight through the tiles | Spray and dye testing around each fixing |
| White crusty grout (efflorescence) and drummy tiles | Water sitting under the tiles for a long time, often from poor falls or a blocked drain | Moisture readings across the tiles and a check of the falls |
| Water pooling against the door after rain | Falls running back to the building, or an overflow set too high | Flood test and fall check to the outlet |
| Leak only in wind-driven rain | Window or door frame junctions, or cladding beside the balcony, rather than the floor | Spray testing low to high along the frames and walls |
| Water in the car park or on a podium below | Planter boxes, podium membranes or slab penetrations | Dye with a UV light on the soffit, zone by zone |
Recent Melbourne balcony jobs
- Truganina: several companies had told the owners to re-tile the whole balcony. Our testing found the balustrade footing screws weren't fitted correctly and one tile was cracked, so the fix was targeted repairs, not a new balcony. Read the case study.
- Cremorne: water from a terrace door was reaching a timber floor. Moisture readings along the sliding door track traced it to the threshold, and the timber under the sill had rotted.
- Elsternwick apartment: wet carpet beside the balcony door. We mapped moisture on the slab with the carpet lifted, then lifted pavers and spray-tested the door frame to show the leak path.
Strata, owners corporations and who pays
When a balcony leaks into another unit or a car park, the first question is usually who pays. In Victoria that depends on whether the failed part is common property or within a lot, which comes down to your plan of subdivision and owners corporation rules. Our report doesn't decide responsibility, but it shows exactly which part is failing and where, which is what the owners corporation, the lot owners and any insurer need to decide it.
We regularly work with strata managers and owners corporations, and offer them pre-approved 30-day accounts. See leak detection for owners corporations. If a balcony dispute has reached VCAT, we also prepare independent VCAT expert leak reports.
Related pages
Shower leak detection Melbourne · Roof leak detection Melbourne · Balcony leaks are often misdiagnosed · Balcony leak detection Sydney · Balcony leak detection Brisbane · Balcony leak detection Gold Coast
Apartment suburbs we cover: Southbank · Docklands · Port Melbourne · South Yarra · Richmond · St Kilda · Elsternwick · Brighton
Balcony leak detection FAQs
How much does balcony leak detection cost in Melbourne?
$398 inc. GST for the first hour on site in metropolitan Melbourne, then $198 inc. GST per extra hour if testing needs longer. That includes thermal imaging, moisture mapping, water and dye testing and a written photo report. If we can't find the leak, you don't pay for the inspection.
Do I need to re-waterproof the whole balcony?
Not always. Many balcony leaks come from the door sill, the sliding door track, the drain, balustrade fixings or grout, and a new membrane won't fix those. We find the exact entry point first so you only pay to fix what's failing.
Who pays when a balcony leaks into the unit below?
In Victoria it depends on whether the failed part is common property or within a lot, which is set by your plan of subdivision and owners corporation rules. Our report shows which part is failing and where, so the owners corporation, lot owners and insurer can decide responsibility.
Do you pull up the tiles?
No, we test without breaking tiles first, using thermal imaging, moisture meters, flood, spray and dye tests. On pedestal paver balconies we may lift a few loose pavers to see the drain and membrane, and we put them back.
Can you work with our builder or strata manager?
Yes. We regularly work with strata managers, owners corporations and builders, can arrange access to the unit below, and send the report to everyone who needs it. Owners corporations can use pre-approved 30-day accounts.
Do you repair balcony leaks as well?
Yes, if you'd like us to. Our first visit is about finding the leak: we mark it, explain the cause and give you a report. Many plumbers, builders and property managers then do their own repairs. If you want us to fix it, we'll quote the repair and return at another time to complete it, often with trusted independent trades.
Balcony leaking? Find out exactly where.
From $398 inc. GST across metropolitan Melbourne. Found or you don't pay*. 24/7 phone line.
Trusted by Australia's largest builders, agencies and strata managers
Australian Home & Business Owners Choose Us
We’re here to help!
Not sure which service you need?
Simply fill out some info below and we will be in touch shortly! Or free call us at 1300 346 353, and our friendly team will gladly help schedule an appointment at your convenience. We're here to make the process easy and stress-free for you!
Call 1300 346 353 - 24/7 for emergencies, office hours 7am–11pm, 7 days
Email admin@1300findleak.com.au — work orders and purchase orders welcome
Book online or submit a work order through our portal
We're a mobile service and come to your property. Our teams are based in Parkdale and Moorooduc in Victoria, Seaforth in Sydney, and Hope Island on the Gold Coast, covering Melbourne, Geelong, the Mornington Peninsula, regional Victoria, Sydney, Wollongong, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Tweed Heads, Casuarina, Kingscliff and Byron Bay.
1300 FINDLEAK Pty Ltd · ABN 83 640 078 397 · VIC plumbing licence 105159 · QLD licence PD26669
Find your local service location by searching your suburb below!
I'm Oliver Schulze, the director of 1300FINDLEAK, a family-run company committed to solving all your gas and water leak problems. We pride ourselves on delivering the highest standards in customer outcomes and satisfaction, ensuring reliable and professional service every time.
24/7 Emergency Service
Need a Leak Detector?
