"Dundonald" wrote in message
oups.com...
The hot water tap in our kitchen acts strange - I can only describe it
as choking. We have a combi boiler so if when I turn the hot water tap
on the water isn't hot yet, the water flows fine. But as soon as it is
hot or when I turn the tap on and the water is already hot the water
splurts out in segments. I find if I turn the tap on quickly up to
full flow the choking isn't as bad. I can hear the pipework from under
the sink back to the garage rattling when the tap is choking. Very
strange. All other hot taps work fine so there's no problem with the
combi boiler or pipework.

I'm no plumber so I can't ascertain what the fault is, but I'm
certainly willing to take things a part to see if I can fix it rather
than buying new taps. Any help please in suggesting what might be the
cause of the problem.

Is it a pillar tap with a plastic handle like the one on the right in this

http://www.diydoctor.org.uk/projects/dripping_tap.htm

and a dome shaped rubber washer inside held on by a grub screw.

Same problem as my hot tap in the kitchen then. As the internals of the
mechanism wear they don't open fully inside and as they heat up when the
water starts to flow the thermal expansion of the brass bits and bobs closes
the gap down even further. Eventually they reach the stage at which by the
time you've got half a sink of hot water the flow is down to a trickle.
Nothing you can do easily apart from buy a new tap. What's actually
happening is that when you turn the handle the washer should pull up off its
seat, like any normal tap, but in this type another bit that wears start to
float down instead leading to very little net motion. Feckin' stupid design
basically.

I'm an engineer so I modified mine slightly on the lathe to increase the
range of motion to tide me over until the new kitchen goes in but most
people won't have that option.

If it's not that kind of tap ignore all the above.
--
Dave Baker
www.pumaracing.co.uk
"Why," said Ford squatting down beside him and shivering, "are you lying
face down in the dust?"
"It's a very effective way of being wretched," said Marvin.