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My upstairs shower is causing a high-pitched whistling sound when it's running and there is a showerhead attached. If I remove the showerhead, but keep the water flowing, the whistling noise stops. It might have something to do with the faucet handles, but I'm not sure. This has happened with different types of showerheads. Also, when the shower is running and I turn the sink on and off (which is next to the shower), the whistling noise will change pitch.
Any ideas?
This could be caused by higher than normal water pressure, that's why the noise changes when you turn on the sink (you reduce the flow to the shower).
Solution:
You could adjust the Pressure Reducing Valve for the whole house (if you have one), or install one on the line to the shower.
In most newer shower heads, there is a washer that reduces the water flow to save water.
Solution:
Removing this washer and replacing it with a normal one should fix the problem (but then you'll be "wasting" water).
This might also be caused by the diverter (the mechanism that diverts the water to the shower head, rather than the tub spout), if the valve is not functioning properly it could cause noise as the water passes through it. This may be accompanied by a small amount of water still flowing from the tub spout when the shower is on (basically it could be creating a "water whistle", similar to how a flute works but with water instead of air).
Solution:
Replace the diverter.
The noise could be increased by improperly secured plumbing, as the pipes are allowed to resonate freely.
Solution:
Properly fastening the pipes using clamps, may reduce the sound.
I'm wondering if the high pitched noise from the shower could be due to a build up of hydrogen gas in the pipes. I'm experiencing this too. I recently bought a new energy efficient washer. In reading the manual I learned that if you don't use the washer for 2 weeks or more hydrogen gas can build up in the hot water system and that this can be dangerous. It said if the hot water system has not been used for this period of time, to turn on all hot water faucets and let the water flow for several minutes from each to release any accumulated hydrogen gas. I live alone so don't use the washer often nor use the other 2 bathrooms in the house regularly. So I wonder if the whistling sound could be from the build up of hydrogen gas.
The high pitched squeal is coming from the diverter valve inside the tub spout. A new one is about $12 at home depot. There are a couple of types of spouts so take off the old one first and see which kind of pipe it fits on.
