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I have low water flow from my kitchen faucet. However, both bathroom faucets have very high water flow.

I have verified all the shut off valves are fully open (bathrooms don't have shut off valves that I see) and all the aerators have been cleaned and put in vinegar overnight.

Also, I recently bought this house. I noticed very high water pressure from the outside hose. I bought a water pressure gauge and it was at 120psi. After reading about normal household pressures, I found the pressure reducing valve and turned it counterclockwise until the outdoor bib showed 60psi. This video I took is with the pressure at 60psi.

What would cause this large difference in water pressure?

Video: https://youtu.be/DpJPebfXhaI

The piece I took out from the back of the pull-out faucet. Went from 1 gpm to 1.5 gpm. enter image description here

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  • Have you checked the aerator in the faucet end? It often becomes clogged with silt and deposits that restrict flow. It can be cleaned or changed.
    – bib
    Jul 16, 2016 at 17:05
  • Yes I cleaned it and submerged in vinegar overnight.
    – rys
    Jul 16, 2016 at 17:09
  • It is possible the kitchen faucet has a restrictor built in. I know many shower heads have this, a small hole in a plate just prior to the nozzle. I have pulled this out and drilled out the hole to provide more flow. Not sure if this is the cause but it may be. One time I just removed the disk but then the head leaked after drilling the hole out I have had good flow volume. I have done this quite a few times on diferent brands.
    – Ed Beal
    Jul 16, 2016 at 17:25
  • Thanks I'll check that. What about the bathroom faucets? They seem too powerful. Is that normal and I just need a stronger restrictor?
    – rys
    Jul 16, 2016 at 17:33
  • Just curious, is your plumbing a maze of pipes T'd off each other? My brother had this problem, and after replacing his plumbing with pex it (mysteriously) went away. One pex connection from a central manifold to each tap restored water pressure.
    – Sidney
    Jul 20, 2016 at 22:36

1 Answer 1

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You should disassemble the kitchen faucet and inspect the temp/flow control valve assembly for debris/obstructions. It is common for debris to get knocked loose and flow downstream, causing problems like this. Your manipulation of the pressure regulator could have done it.

Another consideration: those bathroom faucets appear to be older and may not be of the "water saving" variety. The kitchen faucet seems new/modern and likely has water saving flow restriction, either the sort described by @Ed Beal or integral to the design of the flow control valve.

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  • Thanks Jimmy. Please see the edit to my question above. I attached a picture of the piece I removed. Is this piece necessary or can I leave it out? It sped up the flow by 50% after I removed it.
    – rys
    Jul 20, 2016 at 22:08
  • Oh... that appears to be a diverter valve. Your video does not show it but I suspect this faucet is equipped with a separate hand-held sprayer (or was designed to accomdate that option). The diverter valve sits closed normally, allowing water to flow along path of least resistance to the faucet spout. When you press the lever on the hand-held sprayer, air pressure in the tube that leads to the sprayer is relieved, causing the slight water back-pressure in the faucet body to push the valve open, directing water flow out to the hand-held sprayer which is now the path of least resistance.
    – Jimmy Fix-it
    Jul 21, 2016 at 1:17
  • The diverters are necessary because the hand-held sprayers are not of robust enough design to contain normal household water pressure, if they were they would be unwieldy. If your faucet is not equipped with a hand-held sprayer, it is likely that it was an option and the cheap-ass manufacturer just skipped the step of diverter valve removal. So... no hand-held sprayer = leave that thing out. hand-held sprayer = put a new one in because it should not be restricting flow like that and must be malfunctioning. Please let me know outcome because I am curious now!
    – Jimmy Fix-it
    Jul 21, 2016 at 1:22
  • Another reason for the having the diverter set up is because when faucet valves fail and leak the water goes down the drain. Faucets with sprayers, if a sprayer was at household pressure and the sprayer valve failed... flooded house.
    – Jimmy Fix-it
    Jul 21, 2016 at 1:26
  • No separate sprayer. The faucet actually has a little switch to switch between stream and sprayer and the faucet head pulls out. 1.5gpm is still pretty low right? Regardless, it is an improvement.
    – rys
    Jul 21, 2016 at 3:06

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