Hi all:

I have an electric water heater that makes a sound like someone is trying to get out (with a hammer) when I turn on my dishwasher and only then. Does anyone know what this might be?

speedball1

Your DW's on the same branch as your kitchen faucet. Any noise when you use the faucet? tell me more about this "hammer sound". Is it just one big bang , a series of bangs that won't stop or a bang every once in a while when the DW's cycling and filling? I want ALL the details you have. Is your home a older one? Let me know, Tom

rockybull

When the DW is filling the water heater makes a the banging sound and it started slow and not all the time . It started only at night but does it all the time now. I live in California so I have an air gap and disposal. The thing it, it only happens when when I turn on the DW and it is so loud it goes through the whole house, which is not that big.


Thanks Roxanne

speedball1

This noise does, indeed, come from the water heater. Right? Do you have heat trap nipples ,(see image) installed on the inlets of the heater? Let me know. tom

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hkstroud

Sounds like a loose washer in the stop valve under the sink where the DW is connected to the hot water. Try closing stop valve then reopen about half way to see if there is any difference.

afaroo

Tom,

Why would the heat trap nipples cause the noise?

Thanks
John

speedball1

I have had a prob lem where the balls in the nipple would vibrate and since he said the noise came from the heater and the heat trap nipples have the only moving parts that's what I focused on. However, If you have a better solution I'm all ears. tom

afaroo

Tom,

That's good to know experience talks, no I don't have other solution, Thanks for the info.

Regards,
John

rockybull

No we do not have those nipples. I think the noise is in the hot water pipe next to the water heater and for some reason only whenit's cold so nothing to be done. Thank you so much fo all of the advise