Low Hot Water pressure at all faucets. Help!

[JoeWilson]

Newbie here. Tried a search but not quite finding what I need.

Was having really low hot water pressure at all faucets and showers. Recently it got REALLY low. Looked up some internet stuff and saw some info about draining/flushing HW tank. Before I did that I disconnected the flex pipe coming out of the WH and disconnected the shut off valve. There was build up almost completely blocking the opening.

I chipped that out, trying to be careful not to chip into the pipe. Hooked it back up, turned it on, and the pressure is worse.

Hooked a hose up to the bottom of the tank, opened it, let drain(i'm not sure if this is a flush or drain) Still extremely low.

Funny thing is, I disconnected the flex pipe once with the valve open and water flowed backwards fine. Not sure if this was just water in the system or not. It flowed for a minute.

Do you guys think that debris is blocking the line somewhere? What should i do. Try to dismantle piece by piece until I find the jammed spot? It's galvanized. Is there a way to force water/air back the opposite way?

Any and all help is appreciated. I have a pregnant wife here who doesn't have much patience. She's 9 months and I think I'd better get her some hot water.

Also, If I could actually speak with somebody, that would be great. (323)707-4356

 

[Mikey]

Your pressure is probably OK -- it's your flow that's woefully inadequate. The two are related by the resistance in the pipes -- the more resistance, the more pressure it takes to develop a given flow. It sounds like your pipes and the water heater are full of scale, rust, mineral buildup, and dog know what else that's accumulated since the house was built. It's not an easy fix, I don't think, but the pros here might be more optimistic.

You could check the house plumbing by running the cold water line directly to the hot line at the water heater, bypassing the WH altogether. If the flow to the hot faucets is now as good as the cold side, the problem is in the WH. Replace it. If the flow is unchanged, the problem is in the house plumbing. That's a bigger problem.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[JoeWilson]

Should I dismantle piece by piece trying to find the jammed pipe OR what are my options?

 

[Mikey]

I think you'd be looking at an entire re-piping job for the whole house, but before you panic wait for a real plumber to offer real advice.

How old is the house? How old is the WH? How good is your water? Are you on a well or a municipal system?

Can I infer from your original post that the cold water flow is fine at all faucets? If so, there may just be crud in the hot water lines that came from the WH, as hinted by the crud you picked out of the flex line. I'd like to say you might be able to backflush those lines somehow and get the crud out, but once again I'll defer to a real plumber.

 

[JoeWilson]

The house was built in 1929. The water heater is maybe a year old. Water is good. Municipal system. All cold water flow is great. Hopefully I can backflush somehow.

 

[Mikey]

The year-old water heater suggests that the prior WH failed is some way, probably leaving a bunch of debris in the hot water lines as a farewell present. Such debris could gradually accumulate at choke points in the system (valves, usually, but the flex line might have developed a narrow spot) until flow is severely blocked. You said you saw a lot of blockage in/at the flex line? Take it off, straighten it, and see if you can squirt water through it backwards with a garden hose. See how it flows and see if any crud comes out. See if there's severe crud at both ends, and if you can see through it.

The fact that all HW faucets are affected suggests either uniform blockage throughout the system (very bad) or a blockage very early in the HW distribution topology -- like the flex line (very good). The fact that the cold side is good throughout gives one hope that hot side might be basically OK. You might get lucky and solve the problem with a new flex line.

 

[JoeWilson]

When we say flex line, we are talking about the flex coming off the top of the WH correct? Thanks for the info. I won't go too far into this without some direction.

 

[Mikey]

When we say flex line, we are talking about the flex coming off the top of the WH correct? Thanks for the info. I won't go too far into this without some direction.

That's what I thought you meant, yes.

Good luck; it's way past my bedtime.

 

[WestcoastPlumber]

Not sure if this was mentioned, I would look at the hot nipple on the water heater.

it is either full of debris, or it is a heat trap nipple and they tend to malfunction and cause this problem. sometimes they break inside and the little ball thing falls intot he nipple causing pressure problem.

 

[JoeWilson]

Thanks guys, I'll keep u posted.

 

[Krow]

Its unclear to me if the rest of the house has been repiped with copper. If its a 1929 house and the plumbing is original, I would assume you have galvinized pipe throughout the house.
If this is the case, you may want to look at the surrounding piping around the HWT and see if its galvanized.
If it is, it will be time to replace it.