A LUDLOW technician known as 'the leak spotter' has proved to be a valuable help to Severn Trent Water. 

Gareth Edwards uses a traditional ‘listening stick’ to detect the tell-tale sound of escaping water on the underground pipe network, accessed through boundary boxes dotted across pavements and in roads. Data and electronic acoustic devices, including correlators, are also in his armoury.

So far the 42-year-old has reported more than 330 leaks in the past year, which he then passes on to Severn Trent’s repair teams.

Ludlow Advertiser: Gareth Edwards uses a traditional ‘listening stick’ Gareth Edwards uses a traditional ‘listening stick’ (Image: Severn Trent Water)

“You can’t see the underground leaks, but you can definitely hear them,” said Mr Edwards, who is a water network technician at Severn Trent Water.

“Finding them is a little like being a detective. We use water flow data to identify a suspected leak in a District Metered Area (DMA) and you can narrow down your search with the listening stick, before using the correlators to find the exact spot.

Ludlow Advertiser: Gareth Edwards with an acoustic deviceGareth Edwards with an acoustic device (Image: Severn Trent Water)

“In the daytime, you can pick up noise from road traffic and residential water usage – like flushing toilets and using washing machines. So working at 2am is sometimes the best option, particularly in busy areas like the city.”

Born in Ludlow, Mr Edwards was named after one of Wales’ most famous rugby players. Like his namesake, he was himself a scrum-half in a successful amateur career, playing for Ludlow RFC along with Worcester and also Droitwich RFC.

His healthy competitive nature has seen him currently competing for the most successful leak spotter across the whole Severn Trent region – with only one person ahead of him in the company.

“I am competitive, it must come from my rugby playing days,” he said.

“The thought of being number one in the company at identifying leaks really spurs me on. And some of my areas are now at record lows in terms of leakage, which I’m very proud of.

“But I am part of a team and there is a lot of teamwork involved in this job, including others identifying suspected leak areas from data and also the repair teams coming in to fix them.

“I also really enjoy passing on my experience to new staff. I’ve had young apprentices spend time with me and they are now doing really well in their own areas.”