How do pipes not burst when you turn off a faucet. Shouldnt all that stopped up water build up pressure and explode?
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With most modern community water systems; water is collected, processed, and delivered to your house often with a combination of gravity, pumps, and pressure regulators.
Once at your house, it *should* pass through another pressure regulator. Your household plumbing is designed to take a certain amount of pressure before soldiered joints or plastic couplings would break free or pipes would burst. Your inlet regulator is designed to keep your pressure below that threshold, which also helps keep your taps, toilets appliances etc from being over powered and ruined.
When you shut off the tap, the water is stopped, this sends a small shock wave to the inlet regulator which then restricts the water entering the building before it can add extra pressure to the pipes.
Since water is non-compressible you may notice a momentary jolting sound, called water hammering. That is the result of the minor increase of pressure “hammering” your pipes, but not hard enough to immediately blow your pipes.
As pipes age, particularly copper pipes, this becomes more of a problem because they have less strength to hold the extra pressure.
In modern times, devices have been included to lessen the pressure on plumbing systems, such as an air chamber at the termination of lines to high flow devices such as kitchen sinks. This air chamber allows the extra force of the water to be absorbed by a cushion of air, which can compress in the end of the line. Mechanical devices have also been introduced to plumbing systems to to replace air chambers due to unreliability. Another addition, hose bibs with pressure release valves, these vent extra water to the out side of your house, for example you have your hose connected and a spray gun or valve at the end, with the water flowing full speed. When you suddenly let go of the handle or close the valve, the extra jolt of water is released at your hose bib and sprays to the ground or surrounding area.
With the combination of some or all of these devices, maybe others as well, assuming they are properly functioning, there is little chance your pipes will burst when shutting a tap off, again unless your pipes are old and fragile.
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