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I am looking at buying a REO that was winterized back in Oct 2010; we just had the inspection yesterday (3/29/2011). Several of the hot and cold faucets have a very low flow rate, really just a dribble and this is without the aerator or screen on the faucet.
The isolating tap at the wall is fully on and had been turned on and off several times in case it was sticking. The inspector and I could not understand why one sink in the master had both hot and cold water just dribbling out, and yet the other sink 2' away works fine, as does the bath faucets and the toilet.
My only theory is that either the isolating tap on the wall or the faucet itself have somehow failed due to the winterization and drying out (or it is possible they have not been working right for some time).
I am budgeting that it is the faucets that need total replacement, but maybe it's just the cartridge or tap washer than needs attention.
One other thing that may be relevant, all the taps that have a low flow are the same type (not sure of manufacturer, some kind of upscale gold type befitting the early ‘90’s!).
Any thoughts, has anyone seen something like this before?
What kind of supply pipes? If it is older galvanized steel, then the pipes are proabab ly your concern. ALso many times houses were re-plumber with copper, but the final assembly at the fixture was left steel.
That woudl be my first guess.
If the house is newer and always was copper or PEX, then I would expect frozen pipes.
Equally likely is a defective shut off valve. If it is the screw type valve, I would replace it anyway. those things are garabge. Get 1/4 turn valves. They are teally easy to replace these days. Use the shark bite type and you just cut off the old one and slide the ew one in place and you are done.
It the water hard? You could have a gunked up valve in the fixture itself.
We had one where the plumber had kinked a copper pipe (not sure why he used copper, our system is PEX, but he switched to copper under one sink). However ir would be highly unlikely that you have that in multiple locations.
I hate those things with a passion!
As I've stated in the past- those things are great for any emergency repair but, I'd never use one for a permanent repair.
I agree with CJ.
You could remove the supply line from the shut off valve and see if the water pressure improves. if it does then you could blame the faucet, which would explain why both the hot and cold have a low flow.
Or, since you plan probably on replacing the faucet anyway, just replace the shut off valves, supply lines and faucet in one step. If the problem continues, you have a pipe problem.
If it is a frozen pipe, understand that there is a possibility that when thawed, you can have significant damage once a cracked pipe is thawed....I would turn off the main valve until sure.
It could be worse....when I read the title I thought that perhaps we had another faucet spewing copious amounts of white caulk.........
I am Portland, OR and it has been above freezing for >1 month so I do not believe it is a freezing issue. I can't recall if there are steel pipes but I don't think so. House was built in 1993 if that helps. Not a hardwater area either. Rust could be a problem but it could also be the shutoff valves.
I guess the question is whether anyone has seen either shutoff valves or taps go bad when not used??
Anything can go bad or be defective. To me it is strange that it is both hot and cold, which would IMHO be the faucet. If it is only at that one faucet I would suspect that.
It seems strange that you say many of the home's faucets do this, but the one only 2 ft away is fine. You could try this;
With the faucet on, try turning the supply shut offs. Do they turn freely, and do they change the flow rate? If they seem fine, then I would suspect the faucet. Have you double checked any strainers on the faucets themselves? Anytime you turn water off or on it can dislodge debris that gets caught in the low flow restrictors, thus causing what you describe. Unscrew those first and clean them out.
Did the tub have good flow??? How about the toilet? Did it fill up fairly fast? If the tub had good flow, and the toilet had good flow, then the problem is likely in the faucet or the shut off valve. If they didn't have good flow, them the problem is likely in the pipes.
You didn't say how old the house is, but if its fairly old, and has galvanized pipes, then they could be rusted inside and preventing full flow.
Did the inspector by chance check the water pressure?
How was the flow at the kitchen faucet, or outside hose faucets?
Sunds like the suply line was drained and the amin turned offf. Open all facuts and turn o the mian fully and if their is sufficent pressure ;you have a suplly problem. Its not usual for all faucts to have a problem at once. might have not beeen winerized corrctly to drain the lines and froze with leak or might may not be turned on fully now.Often there are two mains one at house and one at meter also.
I believe the OP has stated that some of the faucets were working fine, and the tub and toilet were fine also. He also stated he believed the pipes were not frozen, and the house was built around 1993......so it is less then 20 years old and probably does not have steel or galvanized pipes.
As others have stated, since the whole house is not affected, I doubt it is a pressure reducer or main shut off or pipes......I'd suspect the faucet flow restrictors are clogged or a few bad shut off valves.....
I just fixed a similar problem for a customer about a month ago. All the faucets in the house worked fine except for the one in the bathroom. The problem didn't start until after the irrigation system was put in. After about an hour of troubleshooting, including pulling the cartridges out of the faucet and making sure they were clear, the customer told me that he'd heard a "blurble" sound right before the pressure went bad. The problem turned out to be an air bubble trapped in the faucet between the cartridges and the aerator. Not saying that's what your problem is, as this is the first time I've ever seen it, but it could be something to check.
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Not frozen
