Old lots, long lines
Homes near downtown Franklin and along the older streets around Franklin College were often built well back from the street, and their service lines can be decades old. Many are galvanized steel, which rusts from the inside and fails at threaded joints, or older copper. Newer homes on the edges of town more often have plastic (PE) lines.
Franklin’s clay soil makes these leaks hard to spot from the surface. The water follows the trench the pipe was laid in and may come up as a wet patch well away from the break, or soak into a basement wall on the street side of the house. A wet spot tells you there’s a leak; it rarely tells you where.
Who owns which part
Most of Franklin is served by Indiana American Water. The utility owns the main and the line up to its shutoff valve near the curb; the homeowner owns the rest. Some homes with a Franklin address west of town are on the Town of Bargersville water utility. If water is coming up at the meter or curb box itself, call the utility first.
Lead lines: Indiana American Water replaces lead service lines, including the customer-owned side, at no direct cost to customers. In an older Franklin home, it’s worth asking the utility what your line is made of before paying for a replacement.
Think you have a leak? Call and tell us what you’re noticing in your Franklin home.
(877) 729-0265Signs the buried line is leaking
- The meter keeps moving after you close the main shutoff in the house.
- A patch of lawn that stays soft, wet or greener than the rest, or ground that settles along the line’s path.
- Water seeping into the basement or crawl space on the side where the line enters.
- Pressure that has dropped everywhere in the house.
- A higher bill with no change in use, often the only sign in winter.
How we find the leak in the yard
- Prove it’s outsideMeter test with the main shutoff closed. A moving meter means the leak is in the buried line.
- Find the routeWe locate and mark where the line runs, since older lines don’t always take the shortest path to the house.
- Listen on metal pipeGalvanized and copper carry the sound of the leak well. A ground microphone finds where it’s loudest.
- Use tracer gas on plasticPE lines carry little sound, so a safe hydrogen mix is pushed through the line and detected where it rises through the soil.
- Mark itThe spot is painted or flagged, with photos for the repair crew.
Galvanized line: repair or replace?
A leak in a copper or plastic line that’s otherwise sound can usually be repaired at the mark. A leak in a galvanized service line is different: if one joint has rusted through, the others are the same age. Replacing the line often costs less than a second and third dig. See water line repair in Franklin.
Water Line Leak Detection: questions from Franklin homeowners
Who is responsible for a leaking water line in Franklin?
The utility, usually Indiana American Water, is responsible for its main and the line up to its shutoff near the curb. The homeowner is responsible for the line from there to the house.
Why is my basement wet on the street side?
A leak in the buried service line can follow the pipe trench to the foundation and seep in where the line enters the house. A meter test with the main shutoff closed tells you if the line is leaking.
Can you find a leak in an old galvanized line?
Yes. Metal pipe carries sound well, so acoustic listening usually pinpoints the leak. Because galvanized lines rust at every joint, we’ll also tell you if the line looks due for replacement.
What if my line is plastic?
We use tracer gas, which escapes at the leak and is picked up by a sensor at the surface, together with tracing the route of the line.
Guides that go deeper
Sources: Indiana American Water; Town of Bargersville Water Utility; Indiana 811; Indiana Administrative Code, Title 327. Updated October 1, 2026.