Help: Low pressure in hot taps

stephenwinder

Can you help us?

We have little or no hot water for over a week now. We have cold water but extremely low (or no) water coming out of our hot taps here in the Tenters in Dublin city.

Can this be due to the water shortages (but cold water not so much of a problem) or what else could it be?

Low water pressure?

Any ideas? It's hard to get a plumber these days!

An airlock was one idea. I've tried to remove possible airlocks by holding the tap and trying to force the cold water into the hot pipe as advised by a plumber but little or no joy.

Black Dog

If you have low water pressure - low on your cold tap in the kitchen - then the water entering your house is coming in at a low pressure and may not be filling your tank in the attic. It is the attic tank which gives the pressure to the hot taps.

Jarren

Advice on Getting Rid of Airlocks
Following a disruption to Water Supply some households may get airlocks in their internal plumbing system. The airlock is generally in the hot water system and most likely the result of faulty internal plumbing.

This is what to do if you get an air lock:-

Firstly make sure all hot taps in the house are in the closed position. Then either proceed with option 1 or 2. Step 3 applies to both.

1. If the hot and cold taps in the kitchen are separate i.e. not combined in a mixer tap, the hot tap should be turned on. If there is an airlock, no water will come from the hot tap. A short length of hose should be used to connect the hot and cold taps in the kitchen only. Turning on the cold tap will result in the cold water being forced through the hot water system and this will force the air which is causing the airlock back into the water tank in the attic.

OR

2. If there is a mixer tap in the kitchen, the hot tap should be turned on. With a cloth in your hand (to help reduce water squirting out) block the mixer tap and turn on the cold water tap gently. This should force the cold water back through the hot water system, forcing the air into the water tank in the attic. Care should be exercised when doing this in case of accidental scalding with hot water.

3. Let this run for 1 – 2 minutes, then turn off the cold tap and let the hot tap run for 1 – 2 minutes to confirm that the air lock is cleared. If the air lock is not cleared, repeat the procedure one or two times more. If this is not successful, contact a plumber and get them to correct the problem. In rare cases the cold water taps in wash hand basins or the bath may also be air locked. This procedure will also work for them, but is more difficult as a long length of hose is necessary from the kitchen cold tap to the nearest wash hand basin or bath tap.

http://environment.southdublin.ie/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=450&Itemid=324

it worked for me yesterday morning


luckly enough I had a very long hose to connect kitchen tap to the bath tap,
otherwise I would advice you to contact a plumber

J

Buford T Justice

Check the level of water in the tank first. Make sure its filling.

Iwannahurl

As always, I have to mention the disclaimer that I am not a plumber or DIY expert.

Are you in a private house rather than, say, an apartment block?

Do you have a direct (unvented) or indirect system?

If you have the usual Irish indirect system, with the header tank in the attic, did the header tank empty completely during the recent water shortage?

If so, one possibility is that debris may have blocked the feed to the hot water cylinder.