DON'T LET PIPING NOISES SCARE YOU ON HALLOWEEN
It’s October! Which means it’s time for Halloween with creepy thrills and spooky noises! But what if those noises aren’t coming from your resident ghost, but instead from your pipes and plumbing?
That could be a sign of a problem! But don’t worry! Below are three reasons why your pipes might be making those frightening noises in the night.
Rising Water Pressure
A humming noise in your house may be a ghost singing a tune. Or it could be a sign that you have an issue with your water pressure. If you’ve searched around your house and discovered that the humming noise is coming from your pipes, it could signify that the water pressure in your plumbing system is too high.
When water pressure is higher than it should be, it can cause your pipes to vibrate, which in turn can cause a humming sound. You can check your water pressure with a water pressure gauge. It should be somewhere between 40 and 60 psi. Anything higher than that signifies your pressure is probably too high.
Water pressure that’s too high can cause damage to your appliances and your plumbing system, so if you’re concerned this may be the problem with your pipes, contact your local plumber to help you sort this issue out.
Whistling Sounds in the Night
What do you do if you hear a whistling noise and it’s not coming from another resident in the house? Check your toilet! That’s right! Whistling toilets are a common complaint.
This happens when the fill valve in the toilet (the valve that tells your toilet when to stop filling the bowl with water after you’ve flushed) begins to deteriorate. This often happens due to age. When the fill valve gets too old it can start to vibrate and cause a shrieking or whistling sound.
Not a pleasant way to be woken from a deep sleep! Many homeowners will try to replace a fill valve on their own, but it’s important to note that installing it incorrectly can cause damage to your toilet, or subject you to costly repairs or increased water usage. If you don’t want to risk flooding your bathroom, give your local plumber a call.
Air Bubbles in Your Pipes
If you hear banging in the walls, it may be that your house is haunted. Or more likely that banging noise is coming from your pipes. Banging in your pipes can be caused by a few different things.
One of the most likely is air bubbles in your system. The bubbles collect in the joints of the pipes, then suddenly change position, causing the banging noise.
Air bubbles in the pipes are something that any homeowner can fix by themselves as long as you follow these steps:
Turn off the water, drain the faucets and flush the toilets (starting from the upper levels first,) wait 30 minutes, turn the water back on and let the faucets flow for 5 minutes, shut the faucets off (starting from the lowest ones in the house first).
Another possibility for the banging sounds is something called water hammers. Many people will use the phrase “water hammers” to refer to any banging from pipes but it’s actually its own issue. Water hammers are caused when the valve connected to the pipe is suddenly shut off.
This causes the water that’s flowing through the pipe to crash against the valve, creating a bang. Water hammers can sometimes be powerful enough to even shake the plumbing free from its joists, so it’s important to contact a local plumber if you suspect this is the issue you’re facing because the repair depends on the age of your home.
Epic Plumbing Serves the Pearland, TX Area
Epic Plumbing has been your local plumber since 1996. Their plumbers are licensed and expertly trained and they pride themselves on their attention to detail and ease of service. Epic Plumbing is women-owned and family-operated and they offer fast same-day service.