Pipe banging, don't want to have to lift floorboards.

[mickespite]

When I turn off the hot tap in my kitchen , I hear a thump/bang noise coming from somewhere upstairs above. 

 

If the cause is a pipe in the kitchen ceiling loose from it’s fixing , how would I go about securing the loose pipe without having to lift floorboards to gain access to it?

[jayc89]

8 hours ago, mickespite said:

When I turn off the hot tap in my kitchen , I hear a thump/bang noise coming from somewhere upstairs above. 

 

If the cause is a pipe in the kitchen ceiling loose from it’s fixing , how would I go about securing the loose pipe without having to lift floorboards to gain access to it?

 

Remove the ceiling below instead?

In all seriousness, floorboards is your only real option. (I need to do the same for an expanding radiator pipe that "clicks" every time the heating comes on)

[Iceverge]

If you have any light fittings that can be removed maybe you can have a look. 

 

Jam a phone with the video and torch on in there and see what you can see when you cycle the tap. 

 

Once you see it you may be able to jam a bit of foam or work a piece of string to stop it annoying you. 

 

If this doesn't happen when the two is closed slowly another option is to fit a hammer arrestor on the pipe near the tap. 

 

 

[mickespite]

20 minutes ago, Iceverge said:

If you have any light fittings that can be removed maybe you can have a look. 

 

Jam a phone with the video and torch on in there and see what you can see when you cycle the tap. 

 

Once you see it you may be able to jam a bit of foam or work a piece of string to stop it annoying you. 

 

If this doesn't happen when the two is closed slowly another option is to fit a hammer arrestor on the pipe near the tap. 

 

 

There are a few spot lights in the ceiling so I could try removing those to see . If the tap is closed slowly it doesn't happen. 

[Iceverge]

4 minutes ago, mickespite said:

the tap is closed slowly it doesn't happen. 

 

The lazy man in me says this is the best solution. 

 

However adding some kind of "shock absorber" to the pipe would be easier than pulling down the ceiling IMO. 

 

Others might be able to advise on the best products/methods. 

[mickespite]

12 minutes ago, Iceverge said:

 

The lazy man in me says this is the best solution. 

 

However adding some kind of "shock absorber" to the pipe would be easier than pulling down the ceiling IMO. 

 

Others might be able to advise on the best products/methods. 

Do you think leaving it like that might cause a leak ?

[Iceverge]

Impossible to know.

 

It could be scraping across a sharp edge every time it moves or just banging harmlessly against the plasterboard. 

 

It could break today or outlast the house. 

[Mike]

1 hour ago, mickespite said:

If the tap is closed slowly it doesn't happen.

This suggests that @Iceverge's solution is worth a try:

 

1 hour ago, Iceverge said:

adding some kind of "shock absorber" to the pipe would be easier

Install a water hammer arrester and see if that fixes it. Various inexpensive ones available, such as:

 

https://www.bes.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/?q=hammer+arrester

 

Edited April 25, 2023 by Mike

[Alan Ambrose]

You don't say whether you have a vented or unvented set-up. The latter will have a pressure vessel which will partly cushion the hammer when a hot tap is turned off. That's if it's pressures are set correctly and if the tank hasn't failed.

 

If it's a new fault on a system that has been working fine (and it's an unvented system), then I would suspect the pressure vessel.