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Hot water pressure drops as hot water makes it to any faucet in the house.

Hot water pressure drops as hot water makes it to any faucet in the house.


  #1  
Old 01-27-18, 04:19 AM
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Unhappy Hot water pressure drops as hot water makes it to any faucet in the house.

2400sqft single level house built in 2008.
Fort Worth, Texas experienced a freeze a few days ago and though we dripped the two front outside faucets and the back outside faucet, we still had a pipe to burst. This burst was really due to a pipe being plugged instead of being capped. The plug came out. We caught it fast enough so there is no water damage. It sounded like a faucet was running so I followed the sound to the front of the garage where the second outside faucet is. There was water pushing out through the nail head holes in the Sheetrock so I killed the water at the curb. We cut open the wall and found that a pipe plug had popped out. Instead of plugging it again we capped it. Turned the water back on at the curb.
So, before this incident the hot water pressure was already lower than the cold water pressure, but now what happens is when we turn on any faucet for hot water it starts out just as strong as the cold water. Good and hard. But as the hot water makes its way to the open faucet the pressure gets lower as it gets hotter until it isn't enough pressure to even start the shower head. It literally dribbles out.
What am I facing here to fix this?
Thanks in advance for your reply.
 
  #2  
Old 01-27-18, 06:51 AM
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If the hot water always starts out strong then diminishes in pressure and flow, then it's apparent something is blocking the flow and swells as it gets hot. Can you remove the pipe cap on the pipe that burst (plug popped out) and then try your faucets? What if any results?
 
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Old 01-27-18, 11:40 AM
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when we turn on any faucet for hot water it starts out just as strong as the cold water.
That would eliminate a single location as a problem.
What heats your hot water ?
 
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Old 01-27-18, 03:32 PM
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Check the portion of the hot plumbing closest to the water heater i.e. before branching off to different fixtures. Also do checks when the hot water has been turned on and already slowed to a dribble so you might hear whistling in plumbing upstream that might reveal the location of a blockage that expands with temperature.

Also possible, heat traps (that look like ordinary pipe nipples) just at the water heater ports, could have clogged or failed causing choking off of the water flow. Heat traps stop tiny eddy currents in the water that cool down the water in the tank by dissipating that heat just above the water heater.
 
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Old 01-27-18, 05:16 PM
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OK. As soon as I get back home I will look at all of what you suggested. Also, no, I can't take the cap off unless of course I shut the water back off at the curb which would stop me from troubleshooting any further. Or is that flawed logic?
 
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Old 01-27-18, 05:53 PM
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What is the hot water source ??
 
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Old 01-29-18, 11:12 AM
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I can't take the cap off unless of course I shut the water back off at the curb

How old is the house? Why wouldn't you have a main shutoff in the house?
 
 

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