Hot water plumbing

mamba80
mamba80 Posts: 5,032
edited January 2014 in The cake stop
I ve got a tap problem in my kitchen and I wondered if anyone knows anything about electric immersion heater hot water systems?
its a set of mixer taps, the hot water one doesn't flow properly maybe about 30% of normal, all other hot taps in the house work fine.
Its not the washer, which I did managed to change, whilst collecting the water in a bucket :(

how do I switch of the water supply to the taps from the immersion heater? the red taps in the airing cupboard don't move at all, they are stuck solid, so I don't know if they are fully in or out or even if they would do the job if I could turn them!!

the only think I can think of is to have a bath with the house water supply switched off and empty the tank ? but im guessing it will still fill from the loft header tank?

any advice please?

Comments

  • bernithebiker
    bernithebiker Posts: 4,148
    I would almost certainly say it's scale or grit/crap in the feed to the hot water half of the mixer.

    Mixer taps often use quite fine piping to feed, as there has to be space in the tap for 2 pipes. I can see no other reason why flow would diminish in just this one tap.

    If your feed (red taps) are stuck, you could try tapping them with a hammer, but you risk leaks.

    If you can isolate the main house feed, then do that, and as you say, run a bath to empty the system as much as possible. Leave the kitchen tap on hot, as the various pressure fluctuations may dislodge the crap.

    If not, and when pressure has gone, take tap off/apart, and blow through with compressed air or a garden hose.

    If that fails, buy a new tap, they're not that expensive.
  • Lookyhere
    Lookyhere Posts: 987
    Cheers
    there are 2 red taps nr the emersion tank and neither will move, will they be the feed into the tank or out of the tank to taps?
  • capt_slog
    capt_slog Posts: 3,965
    You mentioned draining the system by running it dry with the household supply off.

    Be careful doing this, make sure that the immersion is off and won't be switched on by any automatic system. I can't find anything about it now, but I'm certain I've heard of immersion tanks exploding because the water has been 'off' (usually due to water freezing elsewhere) and then a small of water manages to flash to steam.


    The older I get, the better I was.

  • mamba80
    mamba80 Posts: 5,032
    ok i will, its an economy 7 set up, so as long as i dont start at midnight, i should be ok but thankyou for the warning, if that happened it would be worthy of "diy bodges" :)
    i ll also make sure i take the fuse out of the timer feed as thats not linked to the E7 radio clock.
  • capt_slog
    capt_slog Posts: 3,965
    Whilst you've got the system drained it would be worth changing the gate valves that are stuck.

    I don't know if it's right or not, but I'd replace them with ball valves.


    The older I get, the better I was.

  • mamba80
    mamba80 Posts: 5,032
    ok.
    I ve had another look and I seem to have a 15mm inlet cold inlet (this moves ok) to the tank, a hot 15mm outlet pipe from top of heater - this has no stopcock on it and a 20mm pipe with a red valve handle(stuck) , im assuming this is a feed back into the tank as it drains? I m not sure if I can close that, it ll stop the flow from the tank, other wise I cant see what it does ?
  • bernithebiker
    bernithebiker Posts: 4,148
    Post a photo.

    Some immersions have a separate internal coil feed so that a boiler can heat the water (as well as by electric resistance).
  • mamba80
    mamba80 Posts: 5,032
    bernithebiker wrote:
    Post a photo.

    Some immersions have a separate internal coil feed so that a boiler can heat the water (as well as by electric resistance).

    done it! drained tank, by turning off stop cock inlet feed, had a bath, took tap apart and cleaned it up as you suggested 8) and now all ok, tank filling and no air locks :)

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