How to Avoid Water Hammer in Pipes

water hammer damages pipes

If you turn your faucet off and all your pipes bang and rattle, you have a phenomenon called water hammer. A very noisy, annoying and potentially damaging problem. Water hammer is a shockwave produced when the flow of water is cut off, such as when you shut off a faucet or use a washing machine or outside hose. This shockwave can be stopped by an inline device called a water-hammer dampener; it's not very hard to install and it will eliminate your water-hammer problem.

Things You'll Need

• Water hammer dampener
• solder with flux
• plumbers torch
• sandpaper
• pipe cutter

Instructions

1. Locate water inlet line. Find the valve on the line and shut the water off. Open the small knob on the side of the valve; this will drain the pipes you will be working on.

2. Locate a suitable spot down the pipe from the valve and cut it with the pipe cutter. Clean both cut ends with sandpaper until they're shiny.

3. Insert a water hammer dampener on the pipe and solder it in place using the solder, flux and torch.

4. Turn water on and check for leaks. If there are no leaks, the dampener is installed and the water hammer is solved.

Tips & Warnings

• Use caution when working with fire, and molten lead solder. Always wear safety goggles when working with materials that can fly on your race, and gloves when dealing with hot surfaces.

References

• IrrigationTutorials.com: Water Hammer and Air in Pipes