Here's How to Identify if You Have Too Much Water Pressure

Have you ever noticed how every shower in the world is slightly different? When you’re on vacation or staying in a hotel, the shower just feels different. Maybe the place has more minerals in their water, or they have a seemingly endless hot water tank, or maybe the water pressure is fantastic and you’ll miss it when it comes time to check out. 

Yet, there’s nothing quite like the familiar feeling of YOUR shower; the right temperature, the perfect flow. What’s not to love? And while some people may love the idea of having more water pressure (Who doesn’t love a power-wash exfoliation?), having too much water pressure can, in fact, be a bad thing. 

Put it to you this way: Every gasket has its limit. Sooner or later, she’s gonna blow… 

The water coming from your municipal connection at a rate of anywhere from 50-100 PSI (pounds per square inch). Most residential homes typically have 45-80 PSI coming into their homes. Commercial and large residential buildings might have a larger connection to handle more capacity.

Here’s the thing: Most residential appliances and fixtures are designed to handle maybe 30-40 PSI.  Washing machines, kitchen taps, the icemaker - 35 PSI on average. While most fixtures are fine between 40-60 PSI, anything above 80 can cause some issues …

And here comes the mess. Not only does persistent high water pressure wreak havoc on the endpoints of your plumbing system, it can also stress any of your building’s pipes. Before long, you’re rushing around trying to turn off the primary water connection to the building, so you don’t have to file an insurance claim. Fortunately, most buildings are equipped with a water pressure regulator to keep plumbing hijinks to a minimum.

The regulator uses a diaphragm mechanism to reduce the flow of water as it comes into the building off a municipal source. Many modern regulators can automatically adjust the inbound PSI to your house to a set level no matter the pressure coming off the connection. Many regulators can also be manually set and adjusted by a valve. 

Noisy pipes. 

Clanging, rattling, or just noises pipes shouldn’t be making (which is any noise at all). These clanging noises mean water isn’t moving through your pipes evenly, meaning they are banging against your pipes and causing them to rattle. 

Appliances that are on the fritz. 

Washing machines or dishwashers, especially the ones in your tenant’s units, might already take a lot of abuse. But if tenants are frequently calling for repairs or complaining about how loudly the machines operate, you may be dealing with too much water pressure. These machines are working overtime to manage the task at hand while also working with too much water. 

No Hot Water. 

If your tenants complain about the water running cold too soon (and they will FOR SURE let you know quickly), the issue might not be isolated to your boiler. High water pressure means water is flowing through the system faster than usual. There is just as much hot water as there always was, but most of it is flying down the drain.

Outrageous water bills. 

More pressure means water is flowing through faster, which means you may end up paying the price.

When it comes to high water pressure flowing through your building, you can’t afford not to act on it. Checking to make sure your inbound PSI is within working levels is just one of the many ways we work with building owners and managers to ensure their systems are running optimally so you save time, money, and headaches.

Give us a call today and find out how we can make your building’s mechanics work efficiently.