Hi all - I need to replace the hot water faucet in my shower stall. This weekend, I turned off the main water valve for the house (the cold water line into the hot water heater doesn't have an operational shut-off valve) and turned on the the hot water (in the shower) to let the lines drain. BUT it appeared to be draining from the hot water tank too. Will it drain the entire tank? I had thought that without pressure, it would only drain the lines that had water in it. It seems a waste to drain the entire tank. Thoughts?
snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com wrote on 23 Oct 2007 in group alt.home.repair:
If the outlet in the shower is lower than the water heater, then the water heater will drain, along with everything else that's higher than the outlet.
Open other faucets to allow air into the system so it'll drain faster. In fact, open all the faucets so you can drain the whole system and recharge your air hammer chambers.
Turn off the water heater so it doesn't burn itself up trying to heat an empty tank.
Water flows downhill. Is your water heater above the shower?
You need not waste the water. Ten five-gallon buckets should do the trick. You can get eight or nine flushes out of the stored water. Or empty one bucket in the tub (plus hot water) for a bath.
OK, the shower is on the 1st floor, the water heater in the basement. Where is all the water coming from? I had let it drain for about 15 minutes and there seemed no end in sight. Would it take longer than that?
I will try again with all the faucets open ABOVE the heater. Also, what are hammer chambers? back in march, I changed out the kitchen faucet and now the pipes hammer - will this solve this problem too? that would certainly be nice!
And yes, I've been watering the plants with all the extra water. it's been dry here in VA, so that works well!
I remember when we lived out in the country and had a water well (that water was really good for drinking). An electrical outage (common there) would mean no water. My parents used to keep several bucketfuls in the bathroom for flushing the toilet.
Many times, old shut-off valves will not completely stop all water flow. Open a cold faucet below the place you are working to drain extra water away. Shut off the water heater power or burner while doing this. Don't worry about the water in the heater. It is just a one time waste.
snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com wrote on 23 Oct 2007 in group alt.home.repair:
Either you're draining a lot of pipes from upstairs, or you still have fresh water coming in somewhere. Do you have two connections to the city water main (or your well)? If the water draining is just dribbling out, that indicates lots of upstairs pipes. Open the other faucets to make it go faster.
Water hammer is caused when you close a valve quickly. The water in the pipes is moving, and it doesn't want to stop. Remember from high school physics: a body in motion tends to stay in motion. Imagine you're walking on a long skateboard, then suddenly stop. The skateboard will start moving. The water pipes do the same thing. Then they bang against the studs in the wall. That's water hammer.
Water hammer is prevented by giving the water some place to go. It used to be just a piece of capped pipe sticking straight up near the end of a long run. The vertical pipe, a "water hammer arrestor", has an air bubble in it. The air bubble gets compressed instead of making the pipe move.
Over time, the air in the arrestor dissolves into the water, defeating its purpose. You fix this by draining all the pipes so air gets back in.
Nowadays, you can buy a factory-made fixture with a rubber balloon or rubber seal and spring. It lasts until the rubber wears out but doesn't have to be recharged. The hope is that it lasts a LONG time, because it's buried in a wall.
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