If D from BC were a plumber:
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From: mpm on 17 Apr 2010 00:29 On Apr 16, 6:57 pm, "Paul Hovnanian P.E." <P...(a)Hovnanian.com> wrote: > First, make sure you have adequate system pressure and not too much > pressure drop. You could have some restriction in the system that will > cause funny behavior. > > I'm assuming this is a two valve setup. Others have suggested improperly > installed single handle controls, thermostatic valves (rare in the USA, > common in Europe). > > If its two valves, consider rebuilding them with better quality > components. Some cheap valve seats will swell at higher temperatures and > cause the flow to drop. The feedback between the hot and cold flow > setting can cause weird stuff to happen. > > -- > Paul Hovnanian mailto:P...(a)Hovnanian.com > ------------------------------------------------------------------ > "There's something vewy scwewy going on awound here." -- Elmer Fudd Yes, it is a two valve setup -- at least there are separate knobs for Hot and Cold. I don't think it's hooked up backwards, because.... First thing in the morning, if I turn on the Hot, hot comes out (eventually, takes a minute to warm up, as expected) And if first thing, I turn on the Cold, then cold comes out. It does seem like the cold supply pipes are getting heated up, and then, if I crack open the cold, all the heat comes out in the form of hotter water. And will continue to do so, even if I turn the hot water almost all the way off, and crank up the cold as far as it will go.. It is amazing how LONG it takes for the cold to have any effect. I mean, literally, 30-45 seconds sometimes. Yet -- If I turn off both, (while this is happening, of course), and crank on only the Cold, it will cool down immediately. (< 5 seconds). I have no idea. (But then, I'm an EE, not a plumber!!) Having read the replies here, I'm wondering if the pipes are fastened together (adjacent) behind the wall, and the cold pipes are heating up too much from flow in the hot pipe. And, I'm starting to think I "might" have one of those thermostatic valves, but still doubt it. (But with this place.... you never know!) It's not so bad that I want to tear apart the shower tiles to "fix" it. In fact, I would estimate this problem rears its head maybe 10% - 20% of the time, so I could just live with it. I'm more curious to discover what could cause this behavior, as it is completely counter-intuitive (to someone who is not a plumber!!) The house was built in the late-50's (1958?), so clogged pipes are a definite possibility. (Though that said, I'm sure the prior owner was a D-I-Y Nightmare.)
From: mpm on 17 Apr 2010 00:42 On Apr 16, 10:43 pm, Copacetic <Copace...(a)iseverythingalright.org> wrote: > On Thu, 15 Apr 2010 19:26:01 -0700, Charlie E. <edmond...(a)ieee.org> > wrote: > > >It is a pressure thing. There is a constriction in the cold line, and > >it has lower pressure than the hot line. You have to really crank the > >cold, and really diminish the hot to get the pressures equalized. > > No. Both pipes have the same pressure. Hot water gets used less from a > FLOW standpoint because less is needed to arrive at the desired operating > temperature. > > All the pipes in your house all have the same pressure behind them. > > Pressures in a given pipe can be reduced, but only by way of FLOW > elsewhere in the system. Just to clarify for anyone who might help, here.... I can be the only one home - with no other water being used (not even the icemaker), and this problem can still occur. It does not happen all the time, but when it does (or doesn't), it does not appear to be related to any water use elsewhere in the house. Mine is a single-story home on a private lot. City water & sewer. (Not an apartment or multi-family anything.)
From: Winston on 17 Apr 2010 02:21 On 4/16/2010 9:29 PM, mpm wrote: (...) > I don't think it's hooked up backwards, because.... > First thing in the morning, if I turn on the Hot, hot comes out > (eventually, takes a minute to warm up, as expected) > And if first thing, I turn on the Cold, then cold comes out. Only happens in that one shower, yes? Sounds like the 'hot' valve in the wall needs to be replaced. It appears as if the cold water entering the mixing tee fools the bellows in the thermostatic hot water valve into believing that it is receiving colder water than it actually is. It opens up in an attempt to correct for the 'colder' input water and you get even hotter water. I apologize if my earlier answer was cryptic. What is behind the shower valves? Is there any way to cut an access panel in sheet rock so you can see the back side of the plumbing? --Winston
From: Copacetic on 17 Apr 2010 04:14 On Fri, 16 Apr 2010 21:35:23 -0700 (PDT), mpm <mpmillard(a)aol.com> wrote: >At this point, I'm trying to diagnose what is going on. >Most likely, the former homeowner f^cked something up. I told what to do. Make sure that the restrictor is still in the shower head. That alone will solve most of the problems.
From: Michael A. Terrell on 17 Apr 2010 05:52
RogerN wrote: > > At work I have friends that are Atheist, Christian, and unknown other > beliefs. I don't feel the need to make fun of others beliefs or argue with > them, we just get along and do our best to get our job done, helping each > other as needed. For some reason DfromBC feels the need to start posts to > criticize others beliefs when he hasn't demonstrated any sign of superior > intelligence, the opposite actually, all he accomplishes is to show his > ignorance and lack of understanding. He's been doing it for years. :( -- Lead free solder is Belgium's version of 'Hold my beer and watch this!' |