Another Post "Freeze" Plumbing Issue

[KathyinTexas]

In another discussion I had mentioned that "post-freeze" we had a water leak and it ended up being the water pump. It was replaced and no more leaks. Here's the problem we have left: We have no water pressure at the shower and the kitchen faucet on city connection and water pump. The bathroom sink and toilet fill seems to be working fine. We are baffled--any suggestions???

Kathy

[Gary W]

A couple suggestions to check - remove and check the screen in the kitchen faucet. If its clear, then remove the hot or cold water supply lines to the faucet at the valves in the lower cabinet. If you have water flow the most likely the cartridge in the faucet needs replacement. The shower generally doesn't have shutoff valves on the supply lines but if the kitchen cartridge is bad chances the shower cartridge is also.
If you have a plumber friend that would also be a good resource. Good luck.

[Rich W]

When you de-winterize (summerize) it's good to fill and drain the water heater tank a few times before turning on the faucets. Debris in the tank gets stirred up when water is first turned on and when you turn on a tap the screen filters out the debris and ends up getting clogged. I also remove the aerator and let water flow for a while to make sure it's okay, clean the screen and reinstall. This is for every water tap. Our 2006 has a filter in the kitchen sink but it doesn't get used until you push the button. I don't recall that the shower has a cartridge but Gary says to check that too. Getting water out of the outside shower?

[majorairhead]

Sounds to me like air in the lines. Run the pump and city water at the same time, open the low point drains, then close 'em up. Make sure to run water through the outside shower fixture. Keep messing with the kitchen faucet, and all the others. See if it begins to work.

I have a suspicion a lot of water pressure and hot water issues after de-winterizing are related to air in the lines.

[jsaucier]

Suggest you first closely follow Gary and Rich's advice. Good luck!

[Fungus]

Here in central Texas, some of our home water faucets had low pressure due to debris in the filters. We were under a boil water notice for a few days, city water supply tanks were low, and there were some city main breaks, all of which could have introduced debris into the city water supply.

[Trons4u]

Not trying to be insulting with my questions, just throwing things out there.

Are there any cutoff valves that isolate things in the water system.

Also is the water heater normaled (<sp) up for use.

You are trying cold water and not just hot?

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by KathyinTexas

. . . We are baffled--any suggestions???

Have you tried the earlier good advice?

[KathyinTexas]

Originally Posted by OTRA15

Have you tried the earlier good advice?

Sorry for the late reply and thank you for all the suggestions. I think it was a combination of things. We used pressurized air to check for leaks and Major Airhead was right--the shower finally started to work without any intervention with the exception of running A LOT of water through the line. The kitchen faucet had a good amount of chunky sediment so flushing the water heater a few times is a great idea (thanks Gary and Rich). We changed the faucet cartridge too, but we still have low water pressure there. I've been working the last three days so I haven't been able to further troubleshoot. Air may still be causing some trouble. We are heading to Big Bend NP tomorrow, so we'll take our girl "as is". I'm hoping it'll work itself out (fingers crossed).

Kathy

[Rich W]

When the time comes to go....go. Unless there is a safety issue we always leave on time and take care of stuff on the road or defer the maintenance. Lots of places to buy camping stuff.

Hope you have a great time, eat lots of s'mores and stay safe.

[Daquenzer]

Traveling may actually cause the air to move out of the line. I had a situation similar with the water pump. I didn’t get much water with the pump, and it wouldn’t turn off. It was a result of air in the pump. The driving down the road actually got the air out of the system, and the pump worked.

Happy camping.

[Fungus]

Kathy,

Thanks for the update. It helps us all to hear what you figured out since we’re likely to be in the same situation someday.

-Donald

[OTRA15]

Thanks for the update . . .

Go!

[uncle_bob]

Hi

We have a fairly set routine for de-winterizing. We book a site at a local park that has full hookups and *major* water pressure. We spend the day flushing out lines and getting everything working. People do stop and ask questions about just what we are doing ...

For things like the sink and shower, sometimes a flush with things partially assembled ( line going *into* the sink cartridge .... shower with head and hose disconnected ....) is a good idea.

Bob

[majorairhead]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

We have a fairly set routine for de-winterizing. We book a site at a local park that has full hookups and *major* water pressure. We spend the day flushing out lines and getting everything working. People do stop and ask questions about just what we are doing ...

For things like the sink and shower, sometimes a flush with things partially assembled ( line going *into* the sink cartridge .... shower with head and hose disconnected ....) is a good idea.

Bob

Same here. We de-winterized in Stone Mountain Georgia. It's quite a process for us, back and forth, outside, inside, while doing other stuff. If you didn't know, you'd think there was serious trouble afoot