# whistling water heater/vent



## plumber75 (Aug 31, 2013)

Hi I just relocated a 40gal. Rheem nat. Gas water heater its less then a year and when the bruner has been on for about a min. Or two there is a loud whistling that comes from what seems to be the vent. Has anyone else experienced something like that?


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## MTDUNN (Oct 9, 2011)

What vent type


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## plumber75 (Aug 31, 2013)

Single wall galv. Then it goes into double wall within two feet. Its 3"


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## MTDUNN (Oct 9, 2011)

I've see flu piped in backwards. the updraft can turn it into a giant flute. Or I'm thinking too much lol


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Sounds like an undersized gas flex connector.


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## plumber75 (Aug 31, 2013)

I thought about that but it's so loud that you can hear it on the third floor. could it be that lound from the gas line?and its the same flex line I use on every 40gal. water heater I have installed.


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## PlungerJockey (Feb 19, 2010)

plbgbiz said:


> Sounds like an undersized gas flex connector.


I agree


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

plumber75 said:


> I thought about that but it's so loud that you can hear it on the third floor. could it be that lound from the gas line?and its the same flex line I use on every 40gal. water heater I have installed.


 Maybe, maybe not. But if I were diagnosing it on site, I would do nothing until I replaced the flex line with 1/2" nipples and a union. I encountered this more than once on Rheem WH's a long time ago. Especially if it was a bit higher than standard BTU's like their Tri-Power model. 

A gas valve drawing a little extra gas coupled with a wee little bump in gas pressure can make a flex connector scream like the lead soprano for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.


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## plumber75 (Aug 31, 2013)

If its the gas flex why does it take between two and five minutes to make the noise I would think that if its the gas flex it would make the noise imdiatly. I was thinking it was the vent because after it heats up and expands it makes the noise but the flex might get changed out just to check it off the list.


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## PathMaker (May 10, 2013)

Ive seen that twice before. Once in a fireplace and once on a water heater. both times the home had 5lb gas meter and neither device had a regulator. 

scary

got a manometer?


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## MTDUNN (Oct 9, 2011)

PathMaker said:


> Ive seen that twice before. Once in a fireplace and once on a water heater. both times the home had 5lb gas meter and neither device had a regulator.  scary got a manometer?


How did that happen??


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## PathMaker (May 10, 2013)

MTDUNN said:


> How did that happen??


Was just hired onto a small company. young license holder. He got ahead of himself quite often and made mistakes like this. I spent the first two weeks doing "clean up" calls for him. Decided to get out before someone got hurt when he asked me to run a 2 inch laundry drain through exterior load bearing walls (2x4) to make the job "look cleaner". This was after I found that he had forgotten to install the gas regulators. 

Funny part about that call was he went out twice to look at the fireplace. customer complained that it wouldn't stay lit. He couldn't find the problem and left it on the back burner until I hired on. When I got there and lit the fireplace it looked like a jet engine in there. Safety switch was cutting it off like it was supposed to. I traced the CSST to the attic manifold. only line there with no regulator. Put one on.. problem solved. Customer asked me.. how did he not see that? :whistling2:

I knew on that call it was the beginning of the end.


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## MTDUNN (Oct 9, 2011)

House pressure was labeled 5lbs? Did you gauge it? I've seen 2lb regulators on residential. Never 5


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## PathMaker (May 10, 2013)

MTDUNN said:


> House pressure was labeled 5lbs? Did you gauge it? I've seen 2lb regulators on residential. Never 5


It was a 5 lb meter. Its common for houses in that neighborhood to have them. 
Only 3 types round here, .5, 2 and 5 lb.

Silly, but I see them on multistory homes with that crappy 1/2" csst and manifold system, often fed by a tiny brazed copper feed. or the whole house in 3/8 brazed copper with regulators at each fixture.

Dont ask me, I dont builds em, i justs fixes em.


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## Hillside (Jan 22, 2010)

Check the main burner supply tube, I've had a few humming pretty good on some state heaters, state rep said they get tweaked sometimes and u gave to bend it back


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## MTDUNN (Oct 9, 2011)

PathMaker said:


> It was a 5 lb meter. Its common for houses in that neighborhood to have them. Only 3 types round here, .5, 2 and 5 lb. Silly, but I see them on multistory homes with that crappy 1/2" csst and manifold system, often fed by a tiny brazed copper feed. or the whole house in 3/8 brazed copper with regulators at each fixture. Dont ask me, I dont builds em, i justs fixes em.


So 5 lbs into meter with no regulator between it?


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## PathMaker (May 10, 2013)

MTDUNN said:


> So 5 lbs into meter with no regulator between it?


well each appliance should have a regulator of course. this one was taken off and not replaced inadvertently by the dude i was working for at the time. after trying to light the pilot twice, it would burn real hard for a second or two and make a lot of noise it would shut it self off.


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## rjbphd (Feb 5, 2010)

One of many reasons to have 5lbs meter.. multi heating system, pool heater, back up nat gas generator..


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## MTDUNN (Oct 9, 2011)

rjbphd said:


> One of many reasons to have 5lbs meter.. multi heating system, pool heater, back up nat gas generator..


There's a difference between 5lb meter and 5lb regulator


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