Don't be Scared by The Sounds! They're Just Your Pipes
During October, you might be binge-watching old horror movies and thrillers that make it hard to sleep through the night. As evening falls, then later as you lay awake in bed, you might hear some weird noises, and worry that your home has been visited by ghosts.
Never fear, though, a local Holmdel plumber is here to ease your mind since it turns out all these noises might just be your pipe system warning you of problems that require repairs.
High Water Pressure Noises
One spooky pipe sound is humming. It’s not a serial killer or robber prowling about the house, or a nostalgic ghost! Most likely, the water pressure in your house is too high, causing this troublesome humming.The water pressure in your pipes needs to be below 80psi--most homes operate from 40 to 60psi. Some people know how to check their own water pressure, but typically it’s fastest and easiest to have a plumber do it.
Water pressure issues are typically fairly easy to fix once you know the cause. Sometimes, the pressure reducer valve near your water meter isn’t open enough, and opening it correctly will fix the problem. Other times, your toilet flapper or fill valve needs to be replaced.
Whistling Sounds from the Porcelain Throne
Sometimes, your toilet might whistle, or it might scream like a banshee. But it isn’t a spirit haunting the bathroom, it’s likely a failing fill valve or your metal ballcock. Some toilets have a metal ballcock, which is an armed aperture in the toilet tank that allows water to fill up in the tank and stops the water at the appropriate level when you flush the toilet.
Nowadays a lot of people have plastic fixtures in the toilet tank which prevents the whistling, so if it’s your metal ballcock acting up, you might opt to replace it with a plastic one.
Sometimes the whistling is caused by a gasket that’s gone bad in the fill valve, and replacing the gasket would fix the problem. However, normally it’s more convenient to just replace the fill valve since it’s cheap to fix, rather than replacing a part of it and then waiting for problems to start up again.
Some homeowners are comfortable fixing this common toilet issue themselves, so if you do, remember that you need to turn off the water to the bathroom...otherwise you might have a flooded floor to clean up (never fun!). If you don’t have the time or don’t feel confident changing the valve, it’s very easy to have a plumber fix it to make sure the toilet is in tip-top shape.
Air Bubbles Causing Troubles
If banging at night always makes you worry a ghoul is at the door, don’t fear, it’s actually air bubbles in your pipes causing the knocking sound, sometimes known as “water hammers.” Water hammers are often caused by water pressure issues again.Sometimes they can be caused by a loose pipe if the straps keeping your pipe hooked to wall studs have become loose. Sometimes you can troubleshoot this issue at home, depending on when your home was built and if you know where your main water supply valve is.
Doing this requires turning off your entire water supply and then running faucets and toilets to completely drain water from your pipes. Then, you turn the main supply back on--slowly!--so the water and air can come back in.
If your home was built before during or before the 1960’s, your pipes have some “T” shaped intersections with a capped off pipe for air to help stop water hammer, which is basically fast-running water that’s stopped too quickly. Sometimes, the air in these pipes gets replaced by water, so there’s nothing to stop the water hammer from happening. Draining and refilling the pipes should fix this issue.
If your home was built between the 1970s and 1990s, then your home probably doesn’t have any water hammer protection. You’ll need to consult with a plumber. Homes built after the 1990s have improved means of dealing with water hammer, devices called water hammer arrestors.
Hopefully, the above information can help you solve strange loud noises your pipes are making, so you can enjoy your horror movies in peace and so only the movies, not strange noises, are keeping you up at night.
About Force Plumbing and Heating
Force Plumbing and Heating LLC is a family-owned plumbing company based in Holmdel, New Jersey, poised to meet all the plumbing needs of residential homes and businesses alike in Central Jersey. They come with a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and have been Top Rated by Home Advisor.
