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Water flowing in pipes can cause all kinds of weird noises. We all know what water running through a pipe sounds like, but what about some of those other plumbing sounds – like creaks or cracking sounds, rattling, whistling and the most annoying or scary of them all, that loud banging noise? Let’s look at what causes those sounds and how you can fix them.
Creaks or a cracking sound
These are usually caused by the expansion and contraction of the water pipes themselves. As hot water runs through a pipe, it naturally heats the pipe, causing it to expand slightly. Once the water stops flowing, the pipe cools and the metal contracts, resulting in the creaking or cracking sound. The easiest way to fix this is to put some insulation around the pipe, or if the pipe is running through a tight fitting hole in the wood framing, cut a notch in the framing so the pipe can expand and then contract without that creaking sound.
We review Changing a Carbon Block Whole House Water Filter and give some key tips and tricks on how to get the best use out of your whole house water filtration system. Water Wisdom sponsored by WaterFilters.NET and hosted by Aquaman.
Even if your water is purified by your water company, by the time it comes through your faucet, it may have accumulated bacteria and lead from the pipes through which it is carried.
Some cities, like Boston, still have lead pipes in service lines. Some PVC pipes made before 1977 may leach vinyl chloride, a carcinogen, into water as well, as was discovered in Troy, Kansas in 1998. Within your own home, you may have lead pipes or pipes soldered with lead.
1. Build a clothesline
Next to your refrigerator, your dryer is likely the biggest energy-guzzling appliance in your house. And while we wouldn’t ask you to store your food in a vintage icebox, an old-fashioned clothesline is actually a pretty good idea. (If that sounds too retro, think of it as a “solar dryer” instead.)
You can buy a pulley kit like the one pictured here at the hardware store. Or you can order the components online. But it’s easy to make a traditional clothesline yourself, using 4×4 or 6×6 pressure-treated posts for the uprights and 2×8s for the cross arms (which don’t need to be pressure-treated). Simply notch the posts to receive the cross arms, set them in concrete, and run the lines on eye hooks between them. A 4- or 5-foot cross arm should give you enough room for five lengths of line, nicely spaced.
Lumber: $42
Hardware: $10
100 feet of line + 100 wood clothespins: $17
Total: $69
Plumbing problems have been on the rise in recent years. In the past year alone, clogged pipes that required a professional plumber increased 41.6 percent, according to ServiceMagic, leading online resource connecting homeowners and home improvement contractors. Clogged pipes and clogged arteries already have a visual connection, but the symptoms, causes, and treatment for these two conditions share their parallels. By understanding how your pipes work, the risk factors involved, and how these mechanisms closely resemble the blood vessels of the body, you can responsibly maintain your home’s pipes and possibly monitor your own health as well.
Drip … drip … drip. You can fix that leaking faucet that’s been making you crazy. It’s easier than you think — and much less expensive than hiring a plumber. And although there are many styles and models of faucets, the process of repairing a dripping faucet is similar for all of them.
If the temperature inside a house gets below 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0° Celsius) it’s likely that the water supply pipes and the drain traps will freeze.
When water freezes it expands 9 percent, and if there is no room for expansion it’s possible that the pipe will burst. When the ice thaws the pipe will leak, and in the supply system this leak could occur anywhere. Fixing a burst pipe can be expensive, but the damage from uncontrolled water leakage can easily reach into the thousands of dollars. Believe me, you do not want to experience the hassle and expense of having a pipe burst and spraying water all over your basement, or anywhere in your home.
A properly-insulated house built to current building codes will probably never experience this problem under normal conditions. What do I mean by normal conditions? The heating system runs properly, the electricity supply stays on, and the furnace fuel supply never runs out.
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