The outside stop tap is the water co's responsibility, so they should sort that. When I had my leak last year, they fixed it free of charge (although it did take them a few weeks), even though the pipe that was leaking was my responsibility - its in their interest to fix it if you aren't on a metered supply. Check the water co's website, they may have a similar service.
Just back from the neighbour's; she's had the same noise but blamed it on having left a shower running [?] the other day. She now knows it isn't just her problem. But she has to wait for a relative to show up before anything [what?] can be done.
I can't get an answer from the house on the other side. Buggers never answer the door, particularly when they've parked across my drive. Grrr.
How was it resolved in the end? There's only me and an elderly lady to sort it out, and we're both broke. :(
At least I'm relatively capable once I know what to do.
Cheers,
Excellent intelligence. I shall go google. ;) They have a site of sorts, not particularly helpful. Given the time of day and year, I've emailed them. I'll get on the phone in the morning.
Thanks.
"SmileyFace" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@individual.net:
Someone came and looked and, umm, did something. A few months later it recurred and another person came and did something again... Just hoping that it really is solved, but maybe it isn't! I suspect the stop tap at the bottom of the hole in their garden needed a new washer, jumper or something like that.
Something that improved it a bit was turning their internal stop tap down a bit (and off at night). Relations with them not good so it is unlikely that we will ever find out what was done.
Apparently it has affected quite a wide area; an estate built a few years ago with all-plastic plumbing is also vibrating.
The water board sent a guy out. He scratched his head and called in a guy from the electricity board. They scratched their heads in stereo. It seems my house is the worst affected. They didn't stay here long.
They've had a close look at lamp-posts in the area, and were last seen eyeing a nearby substation with suspicion. Daresay they've gone home for the night now.
*shrugs*Gill
Hi,
Might be worth a call to a leak detecting company to see if they have any initial ideas. Or make a listening stick out of a 2"ish square length of wood with a small sheet of ply screwed to the end, and try it on the pipes/building in different places or even outdoors where the incoming main is.
Also try closing the stop c*ck while a tap is running on full, then any debris in it has a better chance of being shifted as the flow is being restricted.
cheers, Pete.
12 days on and the noise is still getting worse. The water board are playing telephone tag with the environmental health department. It seems the fundamental issue is they don't know what's causing it so they're hoping it will go away.
The pitch and volume now vary quite a bit, being loudest and most variable from midnight to 04:00. It can be quite scary when it 'revs up' a few gears - sounds like a 2-stroke only indoors. Not restful or sleep-inducing.
It hums like a motor running, but the variable pitch is puzzling. Is there any flow-dependent pumping equipment in use for domestic water supplies? Could a pump in the main supply route be running its bearings and transmitting them through our pipes? Or am I just going nuts?
Does anyone have any better understanding of domestic water distribution to point us in the right direction? This is way beyond a joke.
TIA
Gill ear defenders muffle everything *else* :(
Something like this usually happens when something happens, like they did work on a main pipe, upper or lowered the pressure, etc. They could try raising or lowering the pressure to see it that stops it. Also they should contact the gas and electricity people to see of they have done something in the area. Has one of the estates, or blocks of flats had something done to them?
Usually one of these problems can be solved by simple detective work. I recall an estate that had its gas cooker burners come on and off. Very dangerous as unignited gas comes on. A little telephoning the local factories showed that one factory has a blast furnace install that morning. On inspection the installers never fitted non-return valves on the air and gas lines, forcing air into the gas main. It was promptly turned off.
sleep-inducing.
That's my entry for IMM-quote-of-the-year-to-date.
...
Sounds like a case for the local newspaper.
It's what I plan in the next few days. Just want to make sure there's someone else to appear in the photo so I can duck out. ;)
Of course, they could pull their fingers out. But first they'd have to find them.
Cheers,
Gill
Resolution at last. Finally the water board sent a crew out at night; they shut off the supply to our houses and the noise immediately stopped. From this they deduced an underground leak and its approximate position.
Tonight they dug a hole in the road, and I don't much care what they did next. The noise stopped.
How little it takes to delight a fool. ;)
Gill
What about the noise in the housing estate? Where did that come from?
Same place, I assume. It wasn't _my_ main; it was in the middle of the road and served quite an area.
Someone suggested the noise could have been caused by air in pipes and/or pressure variations; but he's a musician.
I'll know the noise again, for certain. Anyone asks about humming pipes, ping me. ;)
Gill
It must a been a hell of a fracture to cause that amount of noise in so many houses.
Next question is where was all the water going.....
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