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I noticed that some pipes have a low flow of water, in particular hot water pipes.

I removed the limestone from faucets using vinegar, and it worked, but I noticed that the supply pipes themselves are obstructed (probably by limestone?).

In particular, the pipe that brings hot water for the bidet has a very low flow. I know it for sure since I let the water flow directly from the pipe, without the faucet.

What can I do to remove limestone from that pipe? Can I pour vinegar in the water boiler? And how? I have an old Vaillant VCWI 240 E gas boiler.

Marco Sulla
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Replace the pipes and, if it's time, the boiler.

There's no easy or practical way to clean mineral deposits from the inside of pipes, and in any event you would have to remove them and soak them in chemicals and/or run stiff brushes through their insides. Once you bite off the need to remove and replace the pipes, it makes a lot more sense to replace them with new ones. Use polyethylene pipes as they are more resistant to the problem.

Strong chemical solvents in your pipes can get into your drinking water. Unless your bidet has his whole own plumbing system, you can't do that.

Look on YouTube to see what the inside of a very calcified hot water heater looks like. You will quickly understand why you can't reverse that with vinegar and I hope you'll agree that using stronger chemicals is a bad idea, not to mention expensive.

A water softening system can delay this problem happening again.

Probably not the answer you were looking for, and if it seems drastic, think about the long-term plans, so if / when you do a bathroom renovation you can include a more extensive plumbing refresh at that time.

jay613
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Most of the adhering deposits would be in the boiler. Some more might be in the exposed hot water line immediately after the boiler. You probably would not have to open up any walls to remedy this.

As far as the advisablility of using vinegar to descale the boiler, that would depend on the design of the boiler and the recommendations of the manufacturer. Modern tankless water heaters are supposed to be descaled with vinegar; they are designed to withstand this.

Jim Stewart
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