The cold tap downstairs is a trickle

Hi Guys, can anyone help me, We have a dual hot and cold tap in our kitchen and the water from the cold tap is a trickle, Its been getting worse for months, now its rubbish. The hot tap pressure has always been rubbish but I could live with that. I thought the cold was connectted to the mains so I thought it was a council problem but none of my neighbours have this problem. Rgds

Davy

Possible problem with pipework for the incoming mains. If your neighbours pressure is fine, its either a problem with the pipework, or the tap itself.

Check what the pressure is like in your water storage tank in the attic. If thats good, then it would point to the tap.

Thanks Davy, will do.

The tank has a good strong flow so it maybe the tap. What should I do next? I'm clueless. The missus wants to get a plumber but I'd love to do it myself.

Davy

Turn off the mains under the sink and check the tap. Now this depends what type of tap you have. If its a standard monobloc type the head pulls out of it. Probably a dual channel, and one side is clogged, why the hot is fine.

Joey the lips

I am going to make a guess its the obvious on this and i dont want to sound insulting if you have checked this. Is there a chance the head of the taps is loose and sliping on the spindle threads. How you check this is pop the top disc of on the head and tighten it with a screwdriver

Where the blue and red rim is you slide a screwdriver or a kitchen knife in and pop the top off then tighten the screw.

Hi Lads, This is the tap. Joey that was good advice but if you have a look at the image above the tap is different. Any more hints.
Ps We never had much hot water due to this crack of putting gravity systems in with pump systems or something like that... I'm not too worried about the hot. I would be a hero at home if I get the cold working

Joey the lips

Marcc wrote: »

Hi Lads, This is the tap. Joey that was good advice but if you have a look at the image above the tap is different. Any more hints.
Ps We never had much hot water due to this crack of putting gravity systems in with pump systems or something like that... I'm not too worried about the hot. I would be a hero at home if I get the cold working

Interesting. I would have said it is prob a high pressure tap as the hot water never works but now the cold is not.... These taps work with a ceramic cartridge and they either work or they dont :rolleyes: If they dont its usually a pressure problem. Perhaps you should consider

1. Getting your mains tested but that wont sort the problem with the hot.

2. Invest in a low pressure mixer. Be careful of B&Q great shop but a lot of taps are for the english high pressure market.

USER X

Its common enough when the CC are working in the area that grit and dirt can get into the tap, usually this causes the tap to drip because it damages a rubber washer inside the tap.

This type of tap usually had two flexible pipes underneath which the hot and cold feeds connect on to. If you pretty logical about these things, they are easy enough to figure out as you go along. What I would do is to turn off the main water supply, generally always located under the kitchen sink and you can verify it is off by checking at the cold water cistern (Tank in the attic). Next if you have an immersion, tape the switch to the off position. If your using a new high efficiency condensing boiler, it should be okay to leave it on because it only heats water when there is a certain flow rate.

Now that everything is turned off, you can turn on the taps in the bath and sinks to drain the system of water. Once your cistern and hot water tank have emptied out it will be safe to disconnect the faulty tap in the kitchen. Next disconnect the hot and cold feeds to the tap remembering or marking which is which. Then take the tap out and place it on the worktop or table and disassemble it without damaging it. Look for any dirt or solid deposits.... Do you ever notice lime scale in your kettle? Just asking because it might be possible to have lime scale in the tap head and/or pipe which could cause a problem like this. Once you've finished checking the tap over for dirt inside, mount it back onto the sink and reconnect the feeds. Then turn the main supply back on, turn the tap to the cold side and lift it up so its fully on and see what the pressure is like. Bare in mind the cold water tank will be refilling at the same time but you should notice a change in pressure. If the pressure hasnt improved at this stage, get a new tap. How old is the plumbing in the house? Are the pipes leading to the taps plastic or copper? The fact that your neighbours taps are fine says the pressure in the area is fine and the cold tank has a strong flow so the CC Supply tap to your house outside is most likely fully open, the problem has to be at the tap or surrounding pipework.

Hey userX, Great advice. We have a major limescale problem in the area so it could be that. I have seen the two flexible pipes underneath. Just in regard to turning off the water supply... when you mean tape switch to off in immersion do you mean just put it to off... if I turn off the water supply and then switch it on again after will the cistern and tank just fill up again..

blackbox

The picture of your tap is very small, but it looks like it has a filter nozzle.

If there is a black plastic tip on it, this can be unscrewed and there is often a fine mesh disc in there to trap any foreign matter. If it doesn't have flats for a spanner or if you haven't got a spanner the right size, cover it with a piece of cloth to prevent your pliers from damaging it.

These filters can become blocked with limescale, but can be cleaned when removed.

I would definitely check this out before doing anything else as it is a five-minute job and you could get lucky!

I'll have a look at the filter tonight but if I have to unscrew the tap which part will I apply the tools to. Is it the piece that connects to the sink or the piece between the hot and cold signs and the nozzle... Sorry but I'm a "god help us" at DIY.

Forget the post above. Jeez... One of the guys at work told me there is a washer undreneath I probably have to loosen....That's a good starting point.

USER X

USER X wrote: »

Do you ever notice lime scale in your kettle? Just asking because it might be possible to have lime scale in the tap head and/or pipe which could cause a problem like this.

Thanks guys and UserX for all the advice. I took off the filter at end of tap and it was covered in limescale so I took it apart and dropped it in vinegar. Put it back on and its like Niagara falls in my kitchen...:D

Joey the lips

Marcc wrote: »

Thanks guys and UserX for all the advice. I took off the filter at end of tap and it was covered in limescale so I took it apart and dropped it in vinegar. Put it back on and its like Niagara falls in my kitchen...:D

Amazing...Well done,

Davy

Marcc wrote: »

I would be a hero at home if I get the cold working

well done