Ever find yourself wondering “why is my plumbing so loud?” While we utilize them every day, as homeowners, one thing that we rarely ever spend much time thinking about is the pipes within the structure of your home. Except when there’s a problem with them, that is. When your plumbing is working exactly as it should, there will be little to no noise associated with the water flowing through.
However, when something is amiss, you may begin to notice it becoming louder and louder each time you utilize any plumbing fixture. There are a few plumbing noises that can occur, different reasons why each one happens, and as always, how 1st Call can help! Let’s take a look at why your plumbing is so loud!
Banging or Hammering
Perhaps the most common of all the plumbing noises, banging and hammering within your pipes occurs when the water is turned off and the pressure within the pipes forces the water to collide with the shut-off valve or pipe walls. This collision causes the hammering or banging noise and is noticeable every time you shut off a plumbing fixture. Since this nuisance is attributed to the excess pressure within your pipes, it can usually be fairly easy to resolve if you reset the air chambers in your plumbing system.
To achieve this, begin by shutting off the water supply to your entire house by closing the main shut-off valve. Once closed, turn on all of your faucets within the home so you can drain the pipes of water entirely. If your home has a basement or an outdoor hose, be sure to open these faucets as well.
After you have drained the pipes, open your main shut-off valve and restore the water supply to your home. This action should relieve the pipes of the excess pressure and should alleviate the hammering and banging noises. If this does not offer a solution, however, it may be time to call in the professionals.
Whistling
When you hear a whistling associated with your plumbing, it’s imperative that you determine the source of the noise. Sometimes whistling can occur only in certain plumbing fixtures, faucets, or valves. Other times, whistling can occur in the pipe system itself. Determining where the whistling is coming from can help you alleviate the issue.
If the whistling is coming from a specific faucet, the issue is most likely with a part of the hardware that makes up the faucet itself. Shut off the water supply and carefully take apart the faucet, looking for any loose or worn-down parts. Once you have determined which part is the problem, you can repair or replace it, put the faucet back together, and turn the water back on.
If the whistling is coming from a toilet, it could be one of two issues.
If the whistling only occurs after it is flushed and ceases when the tank is full, the issue is probably a bad ballcock valve. Replacing this valve will most likely solve the noise nuisance. If the whistling occurs consistently without ceasing, however, the problem most likely involves the vertical overflow tube. If this is the case, bending the float arm down slightly will make the ballcock shut off sooner, solving your whistling issue.
If the whistling is not from a particular appliance, and instead seems like it’s coming from your entire plumbing system, it could be due to excess minerals in your pipes or a problem with your pressure regulator. If this is the case, contact a professional to help diagnose and solve the issue.
Vibrating
If you hear a vibrating, pulsating, or humming sort of noise within your pipes, it is typically indicative of the water pressure being far too high. Check your water pressure yourself by purchasing a threaded pressure gauge that screws onto a faucet or valve. The pressure should never be greater than 80psi.
If you check your pressure and it is higher than this level, contact a professional to alleviate this issue by installing a pressure regulator. By doing so, you could also be preventing serious problems from occurring with your plumbing down the road, since high water pressure can be damaging.
Dripping
A dripping faucet can typically be easily diagnosed and solved, however, if the dripping noise you are hearing is coming from within the walls, a more serious issue could be to blame. Dripping can be indicative of a leak somewhere in your plumbing system. When you hear this noise, and a faucet is not at fault, contact a professional immediately to do some further investigation.
If you have found yourself wondering “why is my plumbing so loud?” We have the answers. Ir plumbing is making too much noise, and troubleshooting the problem yourself has left you with no solution, reach out to our team of experts today! We offer emergency plumbing services and are always on standby to help you. No need to search “plumbing services San Antonio” any longer. Make 1st Call your first call!
