shaking pipes, PRV?

djwehr · Feb 1, 2012

the pipes in my house have recently started to shake when 2 or more fixtures are turned on at the same time. you can see a noticeable drop in water pressure at the taps. There is a PRV already installed at the supply line before the water meter. when the toilet is flushed there is noticeable surging sound in the general area of the water meter and the PRV. adjusting the prv up or down does not change the surging sound, but once fixtures are shut off the sound stops.Could this be a bad PRV, or is it possibly something wrong with the water meter?

hj · Feb 2, 2012

99+% that it is the PRV.

Sponsor · 2022-01-29T12:20:58-0800

djwehr · Feb 2, 2012

thank you HJ, gonna call the City Water Department and see if it is their or mine, seeing it is before the meter.

Jadnashua · Feb 2, 2012

At least where I live, it's rare that the prv would be before the meter. Maybe your area has extremely high water pressure, and the supplier put one in. Normally, that equipment is the responsibility of the homeowner...be interesting to see what's the case with yours. It's not uncommon for the utility to put a check valve there.

hj · Feb 3, 2012

NOrmally, anything ahead of the meter is the water company's, (the reason being that if it leaks the water is not being paid for so the homeowner has no incentive to pay to repair it), but every utility has its own parameters.

djwehr · Feb 3, 2012

had a plumber come out and confirm the prv is faulty. had 112psi static pressure, but said it dropped to 40psi when both sinks in master bath were turned on. said 80% chance it is just due to the prv, but something else may contribute to the drop in pressure.

the prv is mine. the city's responibility stops at the property line with the exclusion of the meter, which is located in the home rather than a meter box at the property line. I have 112psi in my area. the new prv should be in today and i will install asap.

Gary Swart · Feb 3, 2012

You should check your thermal expansion tank while you are in this process. Rap on the tank. If is has a dull "thunk", it's full of water and needs replacing. If it has a ringing sound, it's OK.

djwehr · Feb 6, 2012

ok, replaced the prv and shaking is gone. set prv to 65 psi. is it normall for the pressure to drop to 40-45psi when toilet or faucet is open? it recovers once water is shut off.

Jadnashua · Feb 6, 2012

Depends somewhat on where you are measuring the pressure. If there is a flow problem and you were asking the system to dispense more water than it could, possibly, but that seems excessive for either of those, typically, low-volume uses. A rust clogged galvanized supply line could easily have a flow problem, but assuming you are measuring things properly, that seems excessive.

djwehr · Feb 6, 2012

I was measuring at a hose bib on the exterior of the home. all lines are copper.

Jadnashua · Feb 6, 2012

Make sure that the main shutoff(s) is fully open to enable maximum flow rates.

Hackney plumbing · Feb 6, 2012

djwehr said:
ok, replaced the prv and shaking is gone. set prv to 65 psi. is it normall for the pressure to drop to 40-45psi when toilet or faucet is open? it recovers once water is shut off.

I have 70 psi at my backyard hose bibb. I turned on my K-sink and a lavatory. I didn't measure the flow but I was getting great flow out of both fixtures. I went out and checked and I still had 70psi at the hose bibb.

I have a 1" pvc water main that runs 50' and about 35' of 3/4" copper then it drops to 1/2" type l copper for about 20'. A few fittings. No difference in elevation.

Compared to mine.....yours is sick unless your along way from the meter or at a much higher elevation.

djwehr · Feb 6, 2012

think i may call the City, have them check their meter strainer for debris and what not. other than that I cant imagine what could be wrong.

Hackney plumbing · Feb 6, 2012

djwehr said:
think i may call the City, have them check their meter strainer for debris and what not. other than that I cant imagine what could be wrong.

If there is a strainer then thats likely the problem or you have a valve partially closed.

shaking pipes, PRV?

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