why is hot water cloudy when it comes out if the tap?

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why is hot water cloudy when it comes out if the tap?

In: Physics

8 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Heat makes gasses in the water expand causing it to bubble. Theres also a lot of minerals that get trapped in the water that add to the cloudiness

Anonymous 0 Comments

The same reason that egg whites go from clear to white when whipped: air bubbles. Hot water has a lot more vapor than cold water, so more air bubbles.

Anonymous 0 Comments

The shape of the water heating device, and the act of heating the water causes mini bubbles to form. The pressure in the pipes prevents the bubbles from coalescing.

Just because the water is 30C hotter than the cold doesn’t mean it suddenly gets bubbly. The geyser/furnace needs to impart the gas to the hot water.

Not every house the hot water is cloudy, it depends on the specific geyser/furnace/pipes.

Water out the kettle for your tea is not cloudy, no pressure to keep in the minibubbles.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Oh that’s easy son, because hot water is dirty. Now go outside, I’m making us some sandwiches.

Anonymous 0 Comments

It also depends on where your water comes from. Where I live, it’s well water with a LOT of calcium in it because of all the limestone around here..

Anonymous 0 Comments

There are two types of flow, [laminar and turbulent](https://www.cfdsupport.com/OpenFOAM-Training-by-CFD-Support/node334.html). Laminar flow is nice and smooth, while turbulent flow sloshes around and is rougher. As temperature increases, flow becomes more turbulent. This causes the hot, turbulent water to loosen some of the deposits off the inside of the pipes and nozzle, which get carried out with the water.

Source: Heat Transfer professor explained why hot water is cloudy.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Thanks to OP for asking this question and to all who responded! I’m staying at a house where the water gets like that and I was a little concerned about it.

Anonymous 0 Comments

It appears that calcium carbonate (limestone), a mineral, is less soluble in hot water than in cold water, so it precipitate in particules making hot water cloudy.

Not ELI5: this is due to the higher solubility of CO2 in cold water, allowing an acido-basic reaction equilibrium with calcium carbonate to a chemical form more soluble in water.