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Water hammer
If you’re annoyed by banging and
hammering noises in your plumbing,
you have a problem you want to
fix as soon as possible, if only to
save your sanity. Should you call
the plumber immediately or is there
something you can do to stop the
noises on your own?
What Causes Noises in Plumbing?
There are two causes of noise in
plumbing:
1. Air hammer is a result of air
being trapped in your water pipes. It
happens when you turn on a faucet
or valve.
2. Water hammer happens when
you suddenly shut off the water.
It often starts with a big “bang”
followed by a series of diminishing
hammering sounds.
When you turn on a faucet or
valve and air is trapped in a pocket
or pockets somewhere in your pipes,
the air is compressed. Turning on
the valve releases the pressure and
causes a loud hammering sound like
the sound of the air pressure being
released from an air gun.
Water hammer works a little
differently. The reason why it occurs
when you turn off the water is
because the momentum of the water
causes it to crash into
the faucet valve, causing
an initial hammering
sound. Further down in
the pipes, an air cavity
and a vacuum is formed.
This makes the water
surge forward repeatedly
until the air pressure
gradually diminishes.
Diagnosing and
Solving Water Hammer
You may be able to
stop air hammer from occurring by
turning off the water at the mains,
draining all the water from your pipes
and then turning the water on again.
This may work on water hammer, too,
but if it doesn’t, the only other way
to prevent it from happening is to
slowly turn off your faucet to prevent
the sudden onrush of water against
the valve.
Modern plumbing systems have
air chambers installed to prevent
water hammer from occurring. If
your plumbing system has these air
chambers, they may be clogged
with mineral deposits. A plumber
can clean them and you won’t have
to remind everyone in the family to
slowly close the tap or taps where
water hammer occurs.
If you live in an older home, you
have two choices. You can reduce
your water pressure and see if that
works or you can get quotes for
installing an air chamber into your
pipes. This is probably the best
solution, because if left unchecked,
water hammer can cause pipes to
burst. As annoying as those banging
sounds are, a broken pipe is a far
bigger problem and more expensive
to fix.
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