DIY Doctor UK DIY Forums

Hi,
My washing machine started faulting that there was lack of water so wouldn't work, then trying to fill the bath for our kids and the cold water is trickling, same from the basin tap and toilet. All of these are fed from the same cold water pipe from the header tank. My husband has been in the loft, the header tank is full, the cockstop is fully open. We have changed the bath and basin taps, put in the new toilet and fed cold water to the washing machine point but all of this was well before December. It has all worked fine until now. Could it be a build up of gunk in the cold water feed causing the sudden drop in pressure? We have steel piping going to copper piping, we know it's an old system but we are selling and don't want to spend too much money. Any ideas on what is causing it? Any help or advice would be vey much appreciated.

Hi becflood

Very difficult to say without being there. You say steel pipes though. I have come across this sort of problem in the past with galvanized steel pipes. There can be a build up of scale and corrosion, especially at any joints, any loose deposits from the tank can easily block the supply.
If this is the case, the only answer is replacement. I assume the tank is also steel, if so, it must be well past it's sell-by date.

Hi
The first thing I would check is the outlet pipe at the bottom of the cold water storage tank - there is possibility that some scale or debris is blocking the opening. Gently probe the opening inside the tank with a piece of wire (a metal coat hanger is ideal).If that doesn't work we can move on to other areas.
Regards
Colin Evans