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Sensors detect multiple leaks; council told unbilled water loss is roughly a third of system
Summary
Council staff reported that newly deployed water-pipe sensors have identified multiple leaks — including one estimated at 10,000–15,000 gallons per day — and said the city’s unbilled water loss is roughly 35–36% (about 40 million gallons), prompting continued monitoring and targeted repairs.
Ryan, a city staff member, told the Woodburn Common Council that the city has deployed a network of vibration-based leak-detection sensors across its water system and the devices have already identified multiple leaks.
“We have about 39 of them right now,” Ryan said. He added that the city recently installed 20 new units and that the system’s AI-based analysis has allowed staff to find what he estimated as “about six leaks” so far. “One on Ash that we found, it was probably 10 to 15,000 gallons a day,” he said.
Ryan said the sensors listen for pipe vibrations for an hour each night and correlate signals between units to narrow leak locations. He described buying spares to keep systems monitored when components fail and said staff plan to redeploy some sensors to focus on repeat-problem areas.
The staff member described a long-running water-loss problem. “It’s not quite half. It’s like 35, 36%,” he said, adding later that the city is not billing for roughly 40 million gallons of water and that the new sensors are helping locate previously unknown leaks.
Council members asked how the leak detection will change operations and what follow-up is required. Ryan said locating a leak can still require field measurements and careful distance estimates between sensors, but that where sensors have flagged problems staff were able to repair lines and reduce losses in those pockets.
The council heard staff describe past infrastructure work as well: larger replacement projects such as Main Street have cut some breaks, but older neighborhoods will require targeted upgrades when funding and project schedules allow.
The council did not take formal action on the sensors; staff indicated they will continue deployments and provide more data as measurements and repairs proceed.
