Blocked Tap

There may come a day when you turn a tap on at the kitchen sink, and wonder why it is just barely spluttering. Well, this is because there is an airlock in the tap. The reason is, air is lighter than water, it will often become trapped in all the twists and turns of a home’s domestic water pipework, and can happen when the system has been opened up for mainenance or for repair or replacement of a plumbing fixture or fitting. It can also occur when a plumbing fitting or component is worn or perished. All you normally need to do is force out the air lock. A South West London Plumber is a skilled professional.To accomplish this, you will need to connect a length of hose to the affected tap and connect the other end to a tap that works ok. In most cases this is a cold water tap at the kitchen sink. Now, turn both taps on so that the mains water pressure can push the air out of the pipework. Keep this going for around 5 minutes. Next, turn off the tap that has the air blockage first. This process may need to be repeated to work correctly and get rid of all the air. Once this is completed, disconnect the hose from the higher of the taps, then release the lower and let the water in the hose drain into the sink. If there seems to be another tap with the same problem, always clear from the lowest tap first. South West London Plumbers use only skilled tradespeople. If there is a persisitant problem, then the last resort is to drain the system. Isolate the water feed and open up all the taps to drain the water. Close the taps to about a three quarters. Now turn the water back on. Tweek all the taps until there is a light and even flow of water, and then turn the taps on, one by one to half way open, starting with the lowest and working your way up. Do this again at the three quarters open point. Once all air has gone, shut all the taps.