Hi,

My shower has started whistling loudly. It does not whistle when the flow is from the tap, only when I turn it to shower-mode.

Also, it stops whistling if I ever so slightly increase the pressure in the hot-water knob. Turning the cold-water knob does not affect the whistling in any way. Notice, the whistling stops when I increase, not decrease the pressure in the hot-water knob.

I need a plumber who knows what needs to be done and does not add on unnecessary work/spares etc.

I live in Burlington ON. Is there anyone here who is able and willing to take the job? I would prefer to deal with an EhMacer as far as possible. If not, can someone recommend someone they have used and who would be able and willing to come to Burlington?

I do not want to go Google or Yellow Pages or something, because there is no way to know who is good or not.

I read some forums on this whistling and there are so called professional plumbers and handymen whose answers are all over the place, so that gives me an indication that just because someone calls themselves professional, it does not mean they are good!

Thanks and cheers

tilt, has the shower head been changed lately or is it the one you have had operating normally prior to this noise developing? If it has not been changed, I suspect it might be a buildup of solids in the shower head itself.

One thing to try that is inexpensive and easy to do yourself is to buy a container of CLR cleaner, unscrew the shower head and place it in a container like a glass bowl and pour the CLR over it deep enough to cover the portion of the shower head with the holes submerged in the liquid.

Let it soak for an hour and then rinse it off and screw it back on the shower. Turn on the water and see if the whistling is gone. My bet, is that it is caused by a buildup of calcium/lime that is clogging the shower head openings.

Here is the stuff you want to buy:

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/46939750/Linked%20Photos/11-clr.jpg

I was going to suggest the same as SINC, except using vinegar instead of CLR, and maybe soaking longer (say, overnight?).

Certainly worth trying before calling the plumber.

CLR works very quickly compared to vinegar, thus an hour should do the trick, although if you have the time to leave it overnight, and don't need the shower, so much the better. Longer won't hurt.

I was thinking along the same lines.

FWIW there are some good shower heads in the $10-15 price range or about the same price as a jug of CLR. Home Depot used to have a stainless steel, low flow shower head that did not use flow restrictors. Wish I could recall the name but it is a very nice unit and uses less water than anything else I have tried.

Don't forget to pickup some thread tape for putting the shower head back on!

If it is just a matter of build-up in the shower-head, then how come the whistling happens only with the hot-water knob nd not when I turn on the cold-water knob alone? Would it not happen with the cold-water knob too then?

Cheers

More pressure on your hot line.

Couldn't resist ...

It's whistling because it doesn't know the words?

---

Okay, seriously ...

Our shower whistles if the balance of water pressure changes between the hot and cold - what we normally do is just switch it back to the faucet and then back to the shower - which resets the 'balance'. You might have more pressure on one water supply line than the other.

Couldn't resist ...

It's whistling because it doesn't know the words?

Actually they usually just hum along then.

More pressure on your hot line.
The pressure pretty much has to be the same hot or cold whatever the regulator is set to.

Couldn't resist ...

It's whistling because it doesn't know the words?

Er... you are confusing the shower with me. I whistle (or mumble) when I don't know the words, not the shower :)

Getting to being serious (Oh, how boring!) I shall try your idea - when it whistles, I shall switch to the tap and switch back to the shower to see it if the whistling changes in any way, and I shall post back here with info.

Cheers