Reducing sound of water running in pipes throughout house

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3h4life

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Everytime I use my shower, kitchen faucet, or sprinkler system, I can hear the water running in the pipes through my walls and attic. Is there a way I can reduce the noise? It sounds something like... KUUUSHHHHHHHH.... no rattling or banging. Is this something common that I just have to deal with?
 

JMac

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As I'm not a plumber, take my advice with a grain of salt... but what about wrapping the pipes with insulation?
Also, I think what you are hearing is a sign of aerated water.
 

Jadnashua

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Is this from the supply, or the drainage system?

FWIW, there are some practical limits on how fast the water should move through pipes. For hot water, 5'/second is often considered maximum for longevity with 1/2" pipe. It can be faster, up to maybe 8'/second with the cold water side and assumes copper pipe. Those are more with continuous use, but should be taken into consideration on any supply system. If the plumber didn't use proper techniques when cutting and prepping for the connections, each one of those could be causing a little turbulence...when you use a tubing cutter, it tends to mash the ends in a little...prior to soldering the pipe, you are supposed to use the tool to make that full diameter again to smooth out the water flow. Lots of elbows can slow things down.

What kind of pipe is in the house?
 

Sluggo

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It's not uncommon to hear water coursing through the pipes like that. It's not necessarily a sign of anything deficient, and there isn't much you can do about it in my opinion. I'm in a house that is about 10 years old with copper piping throughout and it was sized properly. I can hear a low swooshing sound when I am in certain parts of the house and someone is taking a shower or when a hose is being run full-on outside, but it doesn't bother me. Your noise is a function of where the runs go and the level of insulation of the pipe, of any. Also, if you have old pipes, like galvanized, with a lot of corrosion internally, that could be causing turbulence and more noise.
 
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