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We had a water main break over the weekend, so I wound up with a lot of air in my water lines. I've successfully vented most of that (I think), but there is one kitchen tap which now resonates (building up to quite a howl) if I turn it on less than halfway. That didn't happen before the outage.

Best guess I've got is that there's still a trapped air pocket somewhere which the water to this one tap is either bubbling through or whistling past. None of the others seem to be affected.

Is that indeed the likely scenario, or if not, any hints about what might be the cause?

And any suggested steps to take other than hoping the presumed air pocket eventually gets absorbed into the running water or otherwise flushed out?

keshlam
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1 Answers1

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The problem seems to have been caused by air trapped in the branch leading to the dishwasher--which is indeed next to the one feeding the kitchen sink.

Running a short dishwasher cycle to bleed air out of that branch silenced the howling sink tap.

Moral: Yes trapped air can cause this effect, and remember to bleed everything.

isherwood
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keshlam
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  • This might not be an issue for you, but I've had issues with sediment in the water after such events. I've had old tub faucets start leaking and when repairing them, I found little rocks that chewed up the valve seats and gaskets (with use.) – JimmyJames Aug 07 '23 at 20:53
  • Yes, that's possible. Wasn't an issue in my case, and doesn't actually apply to this question. But it's another reason flushing the pipes after reconnection may be a good idea. – keshlam Aug 07 '23 at 20:55
  • It could apply. If you get enough sediment trapped in your system it can cause all kinds of weirdness. I had a faucet stop working almost completely due to this. I made the mistake of removing the aerator while the valve was open and I almost had a heart attack when it popped. – JimmyJames Aug 07 '23 at 21:00
  • If you think it applies, make that an Answer rather than a Comment. – keshlam Aug 07 '23 at 21:12