Sediment Issue

[shellbmb]

Hello,

First time post and could really use some help. I’m a homeowner so I apologize if my verbiage or description is incorrect.

We have a huge sediment issue that is clogging up all our fixtures, appliances, etc. causing damage and reducing water pressure. And it seems to be only on the hot side of our system. In our master tub, I can open up the cold side and is is clean. I open up the hot side, and chunks start to come out.

House was built in 2008 and had dual hot water heaters. I had several plumbers out and sought several opinions and they all said that it was a failing hot water heater issue and that replacing them would solve the problem. They were 14 years old so approaching their useful life anyways so figured what the heck. Wrong, it did not fix anything. Really didn’t change anything at all. So now I’m at a loss as to what to do next. Some plumbers have recommended some sort of electrical device that puts “charge” on the pipes to reduce buildup, but it sounds fishy to me.

It's so bad that some showers are completely unusable as there is simply no pressure from the hot side. I removed the cartridge from this particular shower (price Pfister setup) and looking at the water inlet ports on the back of the housing, the hot side was completely clogged. Cold side was clear. (see attached picture)

I live in central Texas and our water is fairly hard. We have a lot of limestone in the area and this problem is not unique to my house. My neighbors deal with it to varying degrees. The sediment particles are yellowish-brown-gold and will crumble if you smash it between your fingers. I tried soaking some in a small dish of white vinegar and they did not dissolve which I thought was odd.

There has got to be a better solution that manually removing and cleaning shower heads, inlet filters on appliances and cleaning out tub/shower valves. The worst is the tub/shower since I have to shut off the house water to get to it. This just does not seem normal.


Thanks.

 

[havasu]

Are you on city water or a well? That looks like sand to me. I myself would be looking at some sort of reliable whole house filter.

 

[shellbmb]

City of Austin water.

 

[havasu]

Well, I'd take a sample to the water department, tell the workers to put down their dope pipes, and ask them what are they doing to protect your house from that crap! (sorry, I use to love Austin. Went back there 2 years ago, and was disgusted with what that town has become!)

 

[shellbmb]

Well, I'd take a sample to the water department, tell the workers to put down their dope pipes, and ask them what are they doing to protect your house from that crap! (sorry, I use to love Austin. Went back there 2 years ago, and was disgusted with what that town has become!)

Can't argue with you there. It definitely has changed.

But with the issue being only on the hot side, wouldn't that point to an internal issue rather than a water supply issue?

 

[Twowaxhack]

How hot is your water ?

 

[skeezix]

I would say that the crap that's clogging your hot water faucets was produced by your old heaters. I would look for the easiest hot water tap to access and see if there's any sand clogging it. Then clean it and flush out the feed pipe. You should have loads of pressure.

If you then reconnect the faucet and then have little or no pressure, something inside that faucet is clogged. Fix or replace as necessary, then go to the next hot faucet and repeat.

 

[shellbmb]

How hot is your water ?

I don't know the exact temp, but it can get scalding hot.

 

[Twowaxhack]

Keep it below 140…..preferably no more than 130.

You’ll get more mineral fall out with hotter water.

 

[RickFlorida]

I agree with Twowax. Your problem is not the water coming in. I've never heard of city water causing all of that sediment. I think your 14 year old water heater and being too hot spread the mineral deposits all over the inside of your pipes and you are seeing the sediment still after replacing the water heater. You could try running your water through faucets with the aeroters removed and hope most of it gets out and then just run your water at 130 or 135 degrees like twowax said. This is the easiest fix. And you didn't waste money on water heater as 14 years old is very old and it must have been deteriorating.

 

[Twowaxhack]

The water department may be adding too much calcium hydroxide.

Call them.......

 

[Willowman2539!]

Maybe you can try some kind of water softener tablets. I heard you just put them in your water heater. just a thought. If it makes you feel any better I think there is sewage in my tap water here in Northeast Ohio -- too many people on an aging grid.

 

[shellbmb]

I agree with Twowax. Your problem is not the water coming in. I've never heard of city water causing all of that sediment. I think your 14 year old water heater and being too hot spread the mineral deposits all over the inside of your pipes and you are seeing the sediment still after replacing the water heater. You could try running your water through faucets with the aeroters removed and hope most of it gets out and then just run your water at 130 or 135 degrees like twowax said. This is the easiest fix. And you didn't waste money on water heater as 14 years old is very old and it must have been deteriorating.

The hot water heaters were replaced last August. Would you still expect to see this much debris?

I removed the cartridge on the worst shower upstairs this morning and debris came pouring out. Hardly any hot water pressure before. When I clean it out, works fine for a short period of time.

 

[RS]

Have you talked with any of your neighbors, are they having a similar problem? Does anyone in your area have a softener? I would think a filter and a softener might solve the problem, that's what we do in MN.

 

[shellbmb]

Have you talked with any of your neighbors, are they having a similar problem? Does anyone in your area have a softener? I would think a filter and a softener might solve the problem, that's what we do in MN.

Yes, other neighbors deal with the same issue to varying degrees. One problem I have with the whole house softener is that I don't have an access port, or a loop, to install one on the incoming line. It would have to be external on the side of the house. I suppose I could put something immediately before or after the hot water heater since the problem is solely on the hot side.

 

[RS]

Yes, you could only soften the hot water, that's what some people do. We soften all water used inside the house, because we have iron, which will stain the toilets badly.

 

[Twowaxhack]

Maybe you can try some kind of water softener tablets. I heard you just put them in your water heater. just a thought. If it makes you feel any better I think there is sewage in my tap water here in Northeast Ohio -- too many people on an aging grid.

It happened here. A contractor thought a forced sewer main was a water main.

They tapped into it to provide water to a few houses.

 

[Willowman2539!]

That sounds terrible! Our issue is that it's in all the water in a few square miles b/c all of the mayors since the late 1940's have ignored the signs,and 1/4 of the houses were began just before the great depression and were finished with super cheap materials after the depression hit. Lead pipes still run to hundreds of homes here! And we are one of the furthest outlying suburbs to receive Cleveland water. A sewage pipe(ANYWHERE in a huge system) could be leaking into our tap water.

 

[Willowman2539!]

That sounds terrible! Our issue is that it's in all the water in a few square miles b/c all of the mayors since the late 1940's have ignored the signs,and 1/4 of the houses were began just before the great depression and were finished with super cheap materials after the depression hit. Lead pipes still run to hundreds of homes here! And we are one of the furthest outlying suburbs to receive Cleveland water. A sewage pipe(ANYWHERE in a huge system) could be leaking into our tap water.

 

[Willowman2539!]

Anyways I thin I got to the root of the problem in this house. If you read my first post thinking a bird may have died or made a nest in one of the pipes or something. I read about studor vents on plumbing forum and installed one next to a trap, and boom the smell went away. There must be and have been a clogged vent pipe for a long time since it is starved for air it's exchanging sewer gas for air through the sink traps. I will have to cut, clean and splice it to find out for sure, though.