DIYbanter - View Single Post - Hot Water Pressure Problems

DerbyDad03[_3_]

"hr(bob) " wrote in
:

On Feb 20, 7:43*pm, DerbyDad03 wrote:
Chuck wrote :

On 2/19/2012 6:24 PM, EXT wrote:

"DerbyDad03" wrote in message
4.90...
I've got a hot water pressure problem but only at one fixtu
the 2 handle non-low flow fixture at my basement utility sink.
It's your basic home-center utility sink fixture, the kind you
can attach a garden hose to.

When I first turn on the hot water faucet I get a lot of pressure
but as the water heats up, the pressure drops significantly,
probably by half within 20 seconds.

I don't experience any pressure drop at any other fixture, not at
the single handle sinks or showers fixtures nor at the two-handle
fixture in a 2nd floor bathroom.

It's only at the utility sink where I experience this problem.
BTW it's nothing new, I don't even recall when it first
started...it's been years. I'm just finally getting around to
asking about it.

Any ideas? Could it be that all of the other fixtures are low
flow so that they never allow as much water to flow so that the
drop in pressure is never noticed since they are maxed out at all
times anyway?

Thanks.

I have seen hot water faucets that reduce the flow as the water
gets hot. I have always blamed a design flaw that allows the stem
to expand in length with the increase in heat so that the flow
slows down as the stem slowly moves closer to the seat. It also
could be the washer expanding as well, compounding the problem.
Newer faucets that don't use a stem in the water flow don't seem
to have the same problems.

Some water heaters have a sensor that adds cold water to the hot
water if it too hot. Mine has that feature. I also experience the
hot water flow slowing down as a few seconds after I turn on the
hot water. I had this situation on my previous faucet and I just
put in a new faucet, different brand, and it does the same thing.
This only happens in the kitchen.

My hot water heater has no such sensor, so that’s not the cause of my
problem.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I would turn the water off. Then I would disconnect the water at the
input to the faucet, then have someone turn the water back on and see
if I had a good flow of hot water. I bet there is some sort of
obstruction in the hot water line.

That was suggested earlier in the thread.

Unfortunately, it's all sweated - and from underneath - so it's going to
involve cutting pipes, extra fittings to run the water into the sink,
etc.

Doable, but a major PITA.