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Water hammer shouldn't be capable of breaking anything, if the pipes are properly secured. ...
Water hammer shouldn't be capable of breaking anything, if the pipes are properly secured. ...
???? Is that really We Boots talking????
Water hammer can most certainly break something.
Water hammer is basically the release of all the energy of the moving water that was suddenly brought to a stop. That energy has to go somewhere, and one of the ways it disipates is by causing a water pressure spike in the system. Pressures can momentarily be in the hundreds of pounds per square inch, far exceeding any pressure specifications for plumbing fixtures. Securing the pipes just avoids the energy from being disipated by physically moving pipes. But that's not going to change the pressure wave that travels down the pipes. For that, that where you install one of those water hammer arrestors. They are supposed to absorb some of that pressure wave like a shock absorber. But of course pressure spikes can be so high that many times these arrestors are virtually useless. After all, when was the last time the shock absorber in your car prevented you from noticing when you ran through a 4" deep pot hole?
I'm trying to deliver real-world advice. If the water hammer was extreme beyond common experience, it would have already done physical damage, like blowing a zone valve apart, or completely off its threaded supply connection.Securing the indoor plumbing from movement is job one.
Also, note that there is banging when the zone is first opened, and that is not water hammer. It is something of an oscillation you can sometimes see when a system is first opened in the spring, where there is no water in the zone for the supply to 'push' against. When it happens on a recurring basis, you look to make changes. Installing check valves in the heads is one obvious choice nowadays, to keep a zone full of water, so there's something to 'push' against. Throttling down a zone valve flow control is another option. Changing zone valves is another.