If You're a DIY Plumber, You'll Want to Read This!
When my wife and I bought our fixer-upper in 1987, we knew we were gonna have a lot of work to do. Shortly after moving in, we were surprised to find out there wasn't enough hot water for the two of us. Like a lot of women, my wife spends a great deal of time in the shower, and I was quick to blame her for the shortage. I'm quick, an in and out kinda guy, but when I took a shower after her, I constantly ran out. The 40-gallon gas water heater wasn't enough…
I was taught that only 80% of the contents in a water heater are usable. The remaining 20% is not. So we had 32 gallons usable in our 40-gallon tank. Without a 2.5 gallon per minute flow restrictor in our showerhead, I removed ours, and considering that there's cold mixing with the hot, we were using close to 3 gallons per minute of hot water. After just 10 minutes, the hot water began turning lukewarm.
I decided to upgrade to a 50-gallon tank, which would provide us with 40 gallons usable, an 8-gallon increase. But after I installed it, I didn't notice any substantial difference, so I called Ruud, the maker of the tank. (pronounced rude, not rudd).
The engineer I spoke with immediately asked me what the water pressure in the house was, and when I said I didn't know, he suggested I get a 100 psi gauge with an adapter for a hose bib and, with everything off, check the pressure.
When I checked, the pressure was 93 psi,13 psi above the maximum allowable in Massachusetts. I called him back and told him, and he said that even if I had a 2.5 gallon per minute flow restrictor in the shower head, I'd be pushing much more than that because of the excessive pressure. He suggested I put in a pressure-reducing valve (PRV) and turn the pressure down to 60 psi.
I picked up a 1" Watts U5B (the new lead-free version ain't cheap) and adjusted the pressure to 60 psi. With the reduced pressure, the 50-gallon water heater performed as it should. No more running out of hot water. No more blaming my beautiful wife.
The next thing we noticed were iron stains on the underside of dishes and on our white laundry. I sent a water sample to CUNO for testing. They found high amounts of iron and manganese in the water and suggested an iron removal system that cost over $1,700, not including piping and valves.
I asked them if there was anything I could do that was cheaper. The engineer I spoke with told me I could install a whole house sediment filter, and once it picked up some iron, it would essentially become an iron magnet and remove most of the iron and manganese in the water. He said it wouldn't be as effective as an iron removal system, but it would help tremendously. He suggested that rather than replace the filters every few months, I should keep them in for six months or until there was a 5 psi drop across the filter. He said a single sump with one AP 110 filter cartridge would reduce the flow to 6 gallons per minute, but if I used a double sump with two AP 110s, the flow rate would double to 12 gallons per minute. I bought the double sump.
I purchased the Cuno/Aqua Pure AP12T kit, which has since been discontinued; it has a pressure release button in the head and not a plastic bypass, which, in my experience, is susceptible to leaking, and a transparent sump. I set up a 3-valve mechanical bypass and installed two gauges, one on the inlet side of the filter and one on the outlet side, to monitor the pressure drop.
This is a photo of our tub in 2017 with the filters installed. The Town of Norton continued to deliver water that contained unusually high levels of iron & manganese, town officials saying at the time, "The water meets health standards and is safe to drink." It took an aggressive State Senator to get the EPA involved in Norton's water problem…
Occasionally, when I'd look at the gauges, the one on the inlet side would read 93 psi. I called Watts to talk about the U5B PRV. Their engineer told me that when I installed the PRV, I took what was an open system and made it a closed system. Typically, when a water heater is coming up to temperature, and the heated water expands (can add up to 30 psi depending on tank size), the increased pressure travels out of the house and into the street main, where it's absorbed. When you install either a PRV or backflow preventer, which many cities and towns require, you create a closed system, and the increased pressure remains in the house/building until a faucet, toilet, or other plumbing fixture is used.
He said, "The only permanent solution to fluctuating water pressure is a thermal expansion tank, which would absorb the additional pressure, keep the pressure consistent, and prevent problems associated with high pressure."
I went to one supply house, and they tried to sell me a well expansion tank, but I told them I didn't want a well expansion tank; I wanted a thermal expansion tank that had a threaded brass connection, one that was made for domestic water, not well water.
When I finally got my hands on one, it was the smaller Amtrol ST-5, and I installed it as instructed, within ten feet (developed length) of the water heater. In some cities and towns where water departments install backflow preventers next to the water meters, thermal expansion tanks are installed close to the meter. So don't be surprised if you see one there.
My tank came pre-charged with 38 psi, so I pumped it up to within two psi of the PRV's set pressure, which the engineer at Amtrol recommended. When the system pressure exceeds the set pressure during water heater cycles, it pushes on a diaphragm inside the tank, allowing the expanded water to enter it. When a fixture is used and the pressure returns to normal, the diaphragm returns to its original position. This process maintains consistent water pressure and protects pipes, fixtures, and water heaters from damage. These tanks do lose some of their pressure, so occasionally, they have to be checked and recharged as necessary.
Over the years, I've played with the water pressure and determined that 56 psi worked best for us, and with the pressure drop through a clean filter, the house remains between 52-54 most of the time. The pressure drop method never reached 5 psi, so I made it a habit to change the filters every six months.
Recently, I noticed the thermal tank had become waterlogged. It's our third tank, and I installed it back in 2002. Unlike the smaller ones I originally installed, this larger one lasted 23 years, and it was finally time to replace it.
The original filter sump was iron-stained, and I was having difficulty cleaning it, so I found a new one on Amazon. I bought an Aqua-Pure AP110-2 double filter from Supplyhouse.com, and they were very quick to ship. I got the Amtrol ST-12 thermal expansion tank at a great price from NYDirect.com, and it arrived quickly, too.
As you can see from this photo taken last week, the water in Norton has improved since 2017. I always know when they flush the water mains because the filter immediately turns brown. It's become part of the town's regular scheduled maintenance, and they always post it online when they begin and include which sections of town are being done by date.
The Cuno/Aqua Pure whole-house pre-filter removes sediment and a good amount of Iron & Manganese, but the additional point-of-use filter under my kitchen sink makes the water safe for human consumption.
The Everpure H-104 filter by Pentair reduces chlorine, taste & odor, lead, sediment, and cysts. Good drinking water should be tasteless, colorless, and odorless. There are better water filtration systems available at a higher price (reverse osmosis), but the filters I installed aren't real expensive, and they work.
I miss doing plumbing in the field and teaching plumbing in the schools. Maybe that's why I always enjoy doing some DIY plumbing in my own home.
If it all sounds overwhelming, you "Better call out a Plumber"