Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill14564
When my shower was dripping it turned out to be a deflated expansion tank. My irrigation system is separate but if yours uses potable water then it *might* be the tank.
Try tapping on the side of the tank lightly with a screwdriver. The sound near the bottom should be noticeably different from the sound at the top.
I was lucky and just needed to add air to my tank. There was another thread on here that said replacing the tank was easy also if you determine that is the problem.
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Refer back to a thread "PVC outlet on house" which goes into a discussion which includes the bladder tank and the Thermal relief outlet on the side of the house.
Thermal relief today is handled by the bladder on the water heater as per above or eventually the thermal and pressure relief valve on the water heater. This change was made about 2006 based on replies made by RG123 I believe. Previous to that, a relief valve was installed near the inlet water supply to the house and the water exited through a drip line to grade. Some people wrongly installed caps on the line that then made the line unprotected.
Thermal relief is required since water expands when it is heated either by the water heater or underground irrigation lines with no flow conditions. The water distribution system at the meter is designed to prevent backflow to prevent water from a dwelling to get back into the water distribution system in case it gets contaminated in the dwelling system. As water expands and no expansion bladder is available to reduce pressure increase, water line pressure will increase until something gives ...hopefully the water heater pressure relief and not the tank itself. The shower drip may actually be a form of thermal/pressure relief since the shower valve relieves some of the expanded water pressure buildup.
The questions to answer to try to determine what to do if anything are:
1. When was your house built?
2. Is your irrigation water from the potable water system?
3 Do you have a bladder tank on top of your water heater?
4. Do you have one of the "PVC" outlets on the outside of your house?
5 Have you checked the bladder tank as recommended above to confirm that the bladder tank is working?
Hopefully all you need is what Bill 14564 did to add air or get a bladder tank replacement.
Good luck! PM me if you have questions.