I just had new copper pipes put in my house along with a recirculating pump for fast hot water. I‘m having a few issues that I need help on. I have a 3100 SQF house, 2 story. The pipes are routed through the attic for the bathrooms upstairs.1) When the recirculating pump goes in the morning, and pretty much while it is on, I get creaking sounds coming from the pip. Do copper pipes make noise as they get hot?2) The return for the recirculating pump is on my master bath sink. I get hot water super fast in that bathroom when the pump is on. 3-5 second. But the rest of the hosue is still slow. Did they put the return in the wrong spot meaning the pump is not circulating water to the rest of the house?Jason
To have equal hot water all through the house at about the same time, the plumbers should have ran more than one loop, how many depends on the lay out of the house. All the loops should be close to the same length. The pump will be supplying water to a manifold and the loops would be attached to it. both return and supply. Obviously two different manifolds. Otherwise you will never have hot water at the same time all through the house. The answers about the pipes expanding and rubbing against the wood are correct. The only way to fix that problem is to install rubber washers between the wood and the pipes, enlarge the holes they go through or use a lot more pipe clamps.
If they were run thru drilled holes in the wood. And if it was a snug fit. As they heat up they expand and can make creaking, ticking, popping noises. And as far as whether the pump is in the wrong. The pump location should not matter. It runs a loop. It should go from the water heater to the end of the line and return. Circulating. It is hard to answer without knowing how it was run. Your hot water should leave the water heater and carry hot water all thru your house. At the furthest point it should turn and come back to the water heater. That way it makes a continuos loop.
the pipes expand and make clicking noises if they have been fitted really tight and there is no room to expand. as for the 2 nd question position of pump does not matter as a circulating pump just circles the water round and round the system what matters is the distance between the circulating pump circuit and draw off if its far away then it will take time to come but it should not be too long.
