A reduced pressure treatment system (110) includes a processing unit (152), a reduced pressure source (110), and a conduit (112) fluidly connected between the reduced pressure source and a tissue site of a patient (114). The reduced pressure source is configured to operate at a target power level to apply a reduced pressure to the tissue site. A canister (142) is provided to collect fluid drawn from the tissue site. A sensor (138) is provided in communication with the reduced pressure source to determine a source pressure at the reduced pressure source, and an alarm indicator is provided in communication with the processing unit. The processing unit communicates a leak alarm signal or a canister disengaged alarm signal to the alarm indicator when an actual power level of the reduced pressure source exceeds the target power level for a selected period of time.