Help with cold water low pressure problem needed

[plumbdim]

I have a cold water low pressure problem and hope for some knowledgeable advice on a likely cure?

Have lived in my detached house since it was built in 1995 and its is in a hard water area.
For the last 5 years, or more, the cold pressure has been slowly getting worse. (No plumbing work done in that time)
Only the kitchen tap is normal, which has a direct feed avoiding a water-softener (turned off and not used for 20 years).

ALL other taps have good flow for 4 seconds before they go slow. Turning on the bath tap stops flow to other colds now.

Until recently the bath cold tap would splutter if turned on fully accompanied by a matching dull thumping sound in the walls and possibly transmitted to the header tank in the roof which feeds the hot water and I had thought the cold too!
But if I run a bath of cold water the header tank level does not drop or fill.

 

[Paulus]

Hi plumbdim and welcome to the forum.

Firstly, have you spoken to neighbours to see if they are experiencing similar problems? There could be a leaky water main. If so, its a job for United Utilities.

Secondly check your stop tap is fully turned on and the same with the one outside your property.

Finally, if none of these help, I'm thinking the water softener is gunked up. If it hasn't been used then it hasn't been able to regenerate to rid itself of limescale. In which case it needs removing from the system.

Regarding the cold water feed to the bath, it sounds like it is a mains feed hence the f&e tank not being affected.

 

[PlumbBobBob]

i think it could be something to do with the old water softener is it still in the system just not switched on?

 

[Frelon]

Make sure the softener is on by-pass, in other words feed to softener and from softener are closed, and by-pass is open. Then report back to us the results.

 

[DrainMedic]

The fact the kitchen tap is working normally completely rules out any issues external to the property, including stop taps etc. the kitchen tap also happens to be fed from before the water softener.
With this in mind, and the fact you get 4 secs of good flow before it slows down, suggest a faulty softener or the bypass is closed. If you're not a fan of softeners, simply remove it from the system.

There isn't much else it can be with the symptoms you describe.

 

[plumbdim]

Hi DrainMedic, many thanks for your, and others, helpful advice.
I had sort of dismissed the softener as it has been unused and ?bypassed for 20 plus years during most of the years since have had no pressure problems.
I will now check if the bypass taps are open though they are immovable by hand now, I will need to apply some force.
I will report how it goes next week

 

[DrainMedic]

Try feeling the pipes on the softener and you should feel them get cold as you run water through the taps, obviously not the kitchen tap though.
If they change temperature, it'll prove the softener is still 'in circuit'. If this is the case, then the bypass is closed and this will reinforce the failed softener argument.

The 4 second thing kind of proves it anyway, as that's about the time it'd take for the pressure to be released from the chamber of the softener to be relieved, after which point the pressure drops.

Best of luck with it and please report back!

All the best, Dave

 

[plumbdim]

Job sorted!
Indeed the softener was still 'in circuit' but the stop taps were stuck. I broke the handle off the first and caused a leak trying to turn the second one so had to call in a professional to replace the stuck taps. Now the softener is bypassed the cold pressure is just as it should be.

The softener is a Permutit can anyone advise if there is a known way to clean it out of whatever is clogging it, should I wish to start using it again?

 

[Frelon]

Hi, I had a Permutit (many years ago) as my brother was a Permutit engineer!

I think it is not worth your time trying to get the Permutit working and if you need to have soft water, investigate a modern replacement.

I have had water softeners for over 40 years and would not be without one. Do not be tempted to go for a B & Q cheapie, you will regret it. Think of a water softener as a long term investment and you cannot go wrong. I have had my Kinetico now for 15 years and still gives beautifully soft water.

Think in terms of twin cylinder, non electric (Kinetico, Harveys, Crown, MiniMax). All of these work on the principle of water passing through the softener which will only regenerate when the right volume of water has passed. The (very) old Permutit relied on the user (having to remember) manually regenerating the system, and the later changed to electric timers.

Good luck, and please remember to keep the thing filled with salt!!

 

[PlumbBobBob]

erm... post three :smile5: well done for finding the problem