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Q + A:  Noisy Plumbing Problem


Why are my pipes in the wall making a knocking sound when I have turned on the hot water in the bathtub? 
oklady 11/27/06 12:12pm

There are two common causes of pipe noises.  The first is expansion and the second is what is known as “water hammer.”  Because your noise occurs only when running hot water, the culprit is probably expansion.  If a copper pipe is not snugly attached to wood studs in your wall, it rubs on the wood as it expands.  This can create a sound that could be described as a knock, bang or even drip. 

The other noise, water hammer, occurs when the faucet is turned off.  Water is very heavy (about 8 pounds per gallon) and as it runs through the pipes it picks up speed and a centrifugal force that “shakes” the pipe when it is turned off.  The solution is to better secure the pipe to the framing it is attached to and also to install a “water hammer arrestor” (pictured above) which is basically a shock absorber for your plumbing system.

The good news is that while both of these pipe sounds are annoying, they rarely cause any plumbing damage whatsoever.



tomsmoneypit at 6:08:00 PM EST Blog about this entry
This entry has 3 comments: (Add your own)
  • #3 Comment from krnow3 
    12/7/06 10:54 PM Permalink
    what if its not just when hot water is running?
  • #2 Comment from dfanc79078 
    12/7/06 9:32 PM Permalink
    when i turn  water  from basement    and  no water will come out  from  second  floor bathroom   . what is mean ?  My dad  said that  why the upstair  bathroom shower  get so weak when he  take  shower.   ??  I told him samething  i receive shower  so weak shower .  Do you have  any idea  ?  what is cause from ?  
    we have  basement  with  hook of water meter  small copper pipe to flow around the house.  if  we flush toliet  and no water come out from upstair.
    Help me  the answer .
  • #1 Comment from dbachhu308 
    12/1/06 4:06 PM Permalink
    we all know about the knocking with hot water pipes, but no mention on how to fix it unless you know where to knock a hole it the wall board to wedge something between the pipe and the hole in the 2x4.