Q: When the water reaches the fill level in my washing machine and the agitation cycle starts, I always hear a loud series of bangs in the pipes behind the wall. What’s causing this? Will it harm the ...

Q: It happened suddenly. The plumbing pipes in the bathroom would "hammer" whenever the toilet was flushed. We read your suggested remedy (drain the system) in your Aug. 30 column, and tried it. It ...

Q: Every time I turn off the water faucet in my laundry room, it sounds like someone is banging on the wall. Is my house possessed by evil spirits? Please help. The noise is frightening my kids. A: ...

Flow reversal in piping systems can degrade equipment performance and cause significant water hammer, potentially resulting in catastrophic failure. Power plant condenser cooling water systems—or ...

Q. Tim, every time I shut off a faucet in my home, my water pipes rattle and make a dreadful sound. It seems to me that they might burst. The problem is common in many houses on my street, as I’ve ...

The banging of pipes often heard when a faucet is turned off or on is called “water hammer” and is due to the sudden arrest or reversal of direction of the water flow. Water hammer is a phenomenon ...

Hydraulic transients, most notably water hammer, represent critical phenomena in fluid transmission systems, involving rapid pressure fluctuations triggered by the sudden opening or closure of valves ...

Dear James: Whenever I shut the water off quickly, there is a banging sound. I am building a new house and want the plumbing to be quiet. What can I do to stop the banging noise? — Kenny T. Dear Kenny ...