Abstract: A conductive fluid leak detector having an enclosed and secure housing is disclosed. The housing as well as a pair of conductive fluid sensing probes that project through the housing are tamper-resistant. The detector is provided with a switch for activation of a wash down mode which allows cleaning of the environment where the detector is installed without triggering an alarm. Upon activating the switch, the detector is deactivated for a predetermined period of time. The conductive fluid leak detector is coupled to an external maintenance or alarm system. When not deactivated or in the wash down mode, the detector sends a signal to the external system when conductive fluid is detected by the sensing probes.