JamesB
New Member
Before I start cutting up pipes, would this idea improve my water pressure noticably?
I have an older home with low water pressure in the second-floor shower on either hot or cold. Sink in same bath also has less flow than the downstairs fixtures. Flow is about 1.5 Gpm at either shower or sink.
The cold water supply and hot water tank are located in the basement. There are 1/2" copper pipes which run from the basement to the second floor bath. The toilet is fed by a smaller 3rd copper pipe (only 3/8") also run from the basement.
Somewhere under the upstairs bathroom floor, the hot and cold 1/2" pipes reduces to 3/8", as that is the size of the pipe I see connecting to the shower faucet when I peer behind the plumber's access panel. I suspect there is a "T" to 3/8" pipe for feeding both the shower and sink. The downstairs fixtures (kitchen and bath) are fed with 1/2" pipe and their flow is better as might be expected.
I don't want to rip up the bathroom floor (dining room celing) to replace the 3/8" pipe so here is my idea. I have 3/4" copper coming into the basement (city service) but it has been "T" 'ed almost immediately into two 1/2" pipe outputs. One side is capped off; the other side (1/2" copper) goes across the basement to the water heater. Here there is another "T" with 1/2" outputs. One feeds the inlet of the water heater, the other the home's cold supply.
Would there be any benefit to running a second 1/2" copper pipe from the capped off output (at the 3/4" pipe) and tying this directly into the inlet side of the hot water heater? So essentially the hot and cold supplies (still 1/2") are fed from separate sides of the "T" on the 3/4" pipe. Or do the laws of plumbing say I wouldn't notice any difference (?). Maybe the clothes washer (running both hot and cold) would fill faster. Maybe the 3/8" pipe in the upstairs bath is an overriding factor, and would diminish any benefit?
Finally, extending the 3/4 copper to the water heater would probably work also, but I think it may be easier for me (with little experience) to add a second 1/2" pipe in parallel rather than cut out the existing 1/2" pipe and try to snake around a larger pipe and be without water during that process.
Any help or suggestions greatly appreciated!
I have an older home with low water pressure in the second-floor shower on either hot or cold. Sink in same bath also has less flow than the downstairs fixtures. Flow is about 1.5 Gpm at either shower or sink.
The cold water supply and hot water tank are located in the basement. There are 1/2" copper pipes which run from the basement to the second floor bath. The toilet is fed by a smaller 3rd copper pipe (only 3/8") also run from the basement.
Somewhere under the upstairs bathroom floor, the hot and cold 1/2" pipes reduces to 3/8", as that is the size of the pipe I see connecting to the shower faucet when I peer behind the plumber's access panel. I suspect there is a "T" to 3/8" pipe for feeding both the shower and sink. The downstairs fixtures (kitchen and bath) are fed with 1/2" pipe and their flow is better as might be expected.
I don't want to rip up the bathroom floor (dining room celing) to replace the 3/8" pipe so here is my idea. I have 3/4" copper coming into the basement (city service) but it has been "T" 'ed almost immediately into two 1/2" pipe outputs. One side is capped off; the other side (1/2" copper) goes across the basement to the water heater. Here there is another "T" with 1/2" outputs. One feeds the inlet of the water heater, the other the home's cold supply.
Would there be any benefit to running a second 1/2" copper pipe from the capped off output (at the 3/4" pipe) and tying this directly into the inlet side of the hot water heater? So essentially the hot and cold supplies (still 1/2") are fed from separate sides of the "T" on the 3/4" pipe. Or do the laws of plumbing say I wouldn't notice any difference (?). Maybe the clothes washer (running both hot and cold) would fill faster. Maybe the 3/8" pipe in the upstairs bath is an overriding factor, and would diminish any benefit?
Finally, extending the 3/4 copper to the water heater would probably work also, but I think it may be easier for me (with little experience) to add a second 1/2" pipe in parallel rather than cut out the existing 1/2" pipe and try to snake around a larger pipe and be without water during that process.
Any help or suggestions greatly appreciated!