We have all been noticing a peculiar thing in our house for last 5 months or so. Throughout the day, and specially a few minutes (ranging from 10 to 20 minutes) after using any taps in the house, we hear a loud noise from our water pipes, which mostly is preceded by a suction noise as if there was some vacuum in the pipes which has now been filled with water now. My daughter tells me that at times she has seen some movement in the toilet bowl when she heard the noise. While the loud thud and suction noise seems to be restricted to one area, this seems to happen whenever we use any tap in the house, whether it be on main floor kitchen or upper floor washrooms.
My friend has had a look at it and he feels that the thermostat in the water heater tank in my basement is not functioning properly causing the water to keep heating to a point where it might be pushing steam in pipes which causes air bubbles but he is not sure.
Has anyone had similar problem? Can anyone help me solve this problem?
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Chandresh
Advice is free – lessons I charge for!!
Location: Western Hemisphere
Posted on: 04-10-10 08:51:24
If thermostat is the problem, you may be able to find out by switching it to "vacation" mode which will keep the pilot on, but the heater "off". See if you can discover any anomaly. If thermostat works good and after the water has cooled down in the heater, try the pipes and see if you can still hear the noise.
I am suspecting water knocking more than anything else. This tends to happen during cooler temperatures (like today) when the temp differential is higher between the surroundings and the hot water. This knocking tends to occur when running hot water. So, if you don't get the noise when running cold water, then knocking is the issue.
Water pressure might also be the cause. Do you know if the water pressure in your house feels higher than what you are used to (maybe because the water guys tinkered something on the mains, maybe)? If so, you can try turning the shut off (in your basement) little bit down and see if you can help lessen the noise.
For the water to flow in your pipes and drain, the plumbing network always is vented out to the exterior through the roof. If that vent is blocked, clogged, has a bird's nest, etc, then there will be issues in the water flow. Since, you have noticed it for the past 5 months, check the vents to see if they are clear. For example, during windy days, due to the wind blowing through the vent, the toilet bown water will tend to slosh mildly. So, the vent could also be an issue.
Isolate the area where the nosie is occuring. Is the noise from the incoming pipes or the drain pipes? Knocking can also occur if the pipes or drain are not fastened securely to the joist or the 2x4s on the wall. Maybe the pipes have come loose over a period of time and now when water runs, it shakes the pieps and hits against the wood or the drywall. If this is the case, one solution is to drill few small holes in the drywall and squirt the expandable foam (available in "aerosol" type of cans) that will hopefully act as a bumper. But then, you have to close up the holes with drywall mud and such.
Hope this helps a bit.
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Dimple2001
Chandresh ,
Permanent solution of your problem is to install the "expansion tank ".
http://www.watts.com/pages/learnAbout/thermalExpansion.asp?catId=64
If you need to procure this tank , I can help you to buy it for dealer price but you have to hire a plumber to install it .
Good Luck
AG
Dimple : There is no "Vacation Mode" on any power vented water heaters . This feature was only found in conventional tanks with draft hood .
Quote:
Originally posted by chandresh
We have all been noticing a peculiar thing in our house for last 5 months or so. Throughout the day, and specially a few minutes (ranging from 10 to 20 minutes) after using any taps in the house, we hear a loud noise from our water pipes, which mostly is preceded by a suction noise as if there was some vacuum in the pipes which has now been filled with water now. My daughter tells me that at times she has seen some movement in the toilet bowl when she heard the noise. While the loud thud and suction noise seems to be restricted to one area, this seems to happen whenever we use any tap in the house, whether it be on main floor kitchen or upper floor washrooms.
My friend has had a look at it and he feels that the thermostat in the water heater tank in my basement is not functioning properly causing the water to keep heating to a point where it might be pushing steam in pipes which causes air bubbles but he is not sure.
Has anyone had similar problem? Can anyone help me solve this problem?
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Growing Old Is Mandatory ..Growing UP is Optional
Location: Western Hemisphere
Posted on: 04-10-10 09:37:32
Quote:
Originally posted by AshwaniG
Dimple : There is no "Vacation Mode" on any power vented water heaters . This feature was only found in conventional tanks with draft hood .
You are correct. I forgot to mention as I was writing. Thanks for bringing it up.
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Dimple2001
Quote:
Originally posted by dimple2001
If thermostat is the problem, you may be able to find out by switching it to "vacation" mode which will keep the pilot on, but the heater "off". See if you can discover any anomaly. If thermostat works good and after the water has cooled down in the heater, try the pipes and see if you can still hear the noise.
I am suspecting water knocking more than anything else. This tends to happen during cooler temperatures (like today) when the temp differential is higher between the surroundings and the hot water. This knocking tends to occur when running hot water. So, if you don't get the noise when running cold water, then knocking is the issue.
Water pressure might also be the cause. Do you know if the water pressure in your house feels higher than what you are used to (maybe because the water guys tinkered something on the mains, maybe)? If so, you can try turning the shut off (in your basement) little bit down and see if you can help lessen the noise.
For the water to flow in your pipes and drain, the plumbing network always is vented out to the exterior through the roof. If that vent is blocked, clogged, has a bird's nest, etc, then there will be issues in the water flow. Since, you have noticed it for the past 5 months, check the vents to see if they are clear. For example, during windy days, due to the wind blowing through the vent, the toilet bown water will tend to slosh mildly. So, the vent could also be an issue.
Isolate the area where the nosie is occuring. Is the noise from the incoming pipes or the drain pipes? Knocking can also occur if the pipes or drain are not fastened securely to the joist or the 2x4s on the wall. Maybe the pipes have come loose over a period of time and now when water runs, it shakes the pieps and hits against the wood or the drywall. If this is the case, one solution is to drill few small holes in the drywall and squirt the expandable foam (available in "aerosol" type of cans) that will hopefully act as a bumper. But then, you have to close up the holes with drywall mud and such.
Hope this helps a bit.
I know you have tried to help.....but for a layman (and old man) like me, it has got very complicated.
All I can say is that after turning the knob of water heater tank to minimum, I an still gettting hot water but the noise seems to have reduced (it could only be psycological though)
By the way, the noise does not come when taps are open .....it comes AFTER they have been shut off. The water flows in easily and flows out thru the drains easily too - no blockage seemingly.
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Chandresh
Advice is free – lessons I charge for!!
