Tracking Down a Banging Sound (Pipes?)

[Brandon Seyferth]

Hi All,

Hoping for advice here. I manage a six unit building with a commercial space on the first floor in Chicago (I own only one of the condos, but I manage the building). The commercial space is not part of the HOA.

Recently, the units directly above the commercial space as well as the commercial space have heard a loud banging which they believe might be the pipes. As I understand it, the HOA would be responsible to repair this issue. How might you begin to track down the problem? Hire a plumber to come out and make sure they have access to multiple units to track down the problem? Might be an obvious answer, but I'd be grateful for any thoughts.

Thank you!

Brandon
 

[Account Closed]

Quote from @Brandon Seyferth:

Hi All,

Hoping for advice here. I manage a six unit building with a commercial space on the first floor in Chicago (I own only one of the condos, but I manage the building). The commercial space is not part of the HOA.

Recently, the units directly above the commercial space as well as the commercial space have heard a loud banging which they believe might be the pipes. As I understand it, the HOA would be responsible to repair this issue. How might you begin to track down the problem? Hire a plumber to come out and make sure they have access to multiple units to track down the problem? Might be an obvious answer, but I'd be grateful for any thoughts.

Thank you!

Brandon
 

First check the water pressure. You can buy a gauge at Home Depot. Or, a plumber can do this for you. 

Water hammer can occur when the overall pressure of the main water pipe entering the building is too high. Normal water pressure runs between 40 and 60 psi (pounds per square inch), and above this, the high pressure could be the source of water hammer. Very high pressure above 80 psi can also damage appliances.

Sometimes draining the system allows for any trapped air pockets to escape reducing the noise.

Sometimes you can fix the problem by installing a water hammer arrester at the offending valve.

There are several other things that can affect the pipes and cause noise that require an inspection.