Hot water suddenly shuts off with a thud!!

[bree]

I had a slab leak about a year ago. A licensed plumber rerouted the line through the ceiling. At about the same time, a different, experienced plumber installed a new single-arm kitchen faucet. (We had had a new angle stop put in about 6 months prior.) When you turn the faucet handle to full hot, after a minute or two the hot water would suddenly shut off completely with a thud-like sound. At first you could wait a couple of minutes, turn the cold water on, and gradually turn it up to full hot again and it would run for a short while before stopping.
The faucet mfr sent us a new cartridge; same problem. A second new cartridge; same problem. A whole new faucet; same problem. Another new cartridge; and then another. Same problem!
The plumber took the first faucet and the cartridge apart and found nothing wrong with them. We have now reached the point where no hot water comes out at all at any time BUT, as usual, JUST AT THE KITCHEN SINK FAUCET. My son turned the under-sink shutoff valve to off, disconnected the hot water line, and turned the hot water back on. Not a drop came out.
I suddenly remembered a problem I had with a house I rent out: The tenant called; there's something wrong with the water heater. She gets in the shower, it's fine, and suddenly there's no hot water, just cold. Her husband takes a shower next -- same thing.
A plumber meets me at the house with a new water heater. I see that the tenant has paid someone to install a faucet handle on the old water heater. My plumber takes the old one out and says this is what caused the problem: when the faucet was installed, the piece of metal from the install fell in, and when the hot water was turned on and the water flowed out into the pipe, the piece of metal flowed up with it and shut off the flow.
So, I called the plumber who did the repipe and told him he apparently left something in the line when repiping and asked him to come out and fix his work. He says it is not the repiping; if it were, we'd have problems with the dishwasher and the other sinks. (The dishwasher hot water tubing comes out of the wall about 8 inches below.) It's the angle stop, and for $150 he will come and install a new one! I cannot imagine how a ball valve could suddenly shut off. At this point, however, the obstruction could well be lodged in or near the angle stop because we now NEVER get hot water in that sink.
Has anyone experienced -- or even heard of -- this problem? Solution suggestions? And should the repipe plumber be held responsible for checking this out/repairing at no charge? Thanks!!
In case you want a diagram of the repiping, here it is: Hot water heater is in garage against common wall to kitchen. Kitchen sink is on opposite side of room against common wall to dining room. Copper pipe was looped through ceiling space from garage across kitchen and down through the kitchen/dining room wall to the back behind sink plumbing. I did not see how this was hooked up to inside pipes.

 

[Terry]

Reminds me of a job on Mercer Island.
The temp on the main tub was fluctuating.
So I figure, no sweat, just install a Moen Posi-Temp.

They call me back a few weeks later, better, but not quite right either.
I check the cartridge, that's not the problem.
I go to remove the valve, and while I have the valve out, we throw a few 90's and pipe on and run hot water into the tub and look to see what comes out.
What comes out is a small round plastic ball that floats.
It could have come from the water heater, sometimes they have little balls like that to prevent hot water from leaving the water heater while it's at idle.
Or, it could have found it's way into piping for some unknown reason.
Whatever the reason, it was now gone, so we reinstalled the Moen, and it worked perfectly.

But we never did figure out how the ball got in there.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Jadnashua]

FOr chance are any of the valves/hoses to that kitchen sink Watts FloodSafe stuff? If so, that may be the problem.

 

[Terry]

For chance are any of the valves/hoses to that kitchen sink Watts FloodSafe stuff? If so, that may be the problem.
​

Good point Jim,
That is the first thing I should have asked.
For any homeowner, if you have floodsafe supplies, REMOVE THEM.

Here is a horror story of someone that installed floodsafe water supplies,
Story here



​

 

[bree]

Thanks, Terry and Jim, for your helpful info.

The valves under the sink do not look like the picture of the FloodSafe -- no big plastic endpiece.
I called the mfr of the water heater (Rheem), Terry, and indeed, depending on the serial number, there is either a plastic ball or a rubber disc in there.
The guru at my local Ace gave me instructions for getting it or any other blockage out of the system, AND I INCLUDE THE DETAILS FOR ANY READER WHO NEEDS THEM, by shutting off the water inflow at the water heater tank, bleeding the pressure by turning a hot water faucet on until it stops running, removing the angle stop, pushing a 5/8" hose (with the metal end cut off) onto the now naked pipe, running it out to the patio with a sieve on the end, turning the water at the tank back on, and seeing what comes out in the sieve. If need be, you can run the hose into a big garbage can. Then turn the water off again, put the angle stop back on, reconnect everything, and restart the water. Terry, if I missed something, please amend this. Thanks.
Will let you know what comes out!

 

[Ron Stanley]

Old thread, but thought I would reply because I had exactly the same issue, only with cold water in the bathroom sink. Just in case someone else is doing a Google search, turns out the shutoff valve under the sink was sticky and was only half open. I closed it, reopened it by muscling it all the way open, problem solved, no tools, no parts, no plumber. Might save you some money and hassle.

Not sure why it was happening, but that should probably be the first thing you try.

 

[Plumber69]

Hook a supply line on the valve run it in a bucket. If still happens change valve undersink