2007-01-03 06:04:00 · 6 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
Thanks guys, sorry, I didn't really understand the question, but I get it now!!
2007-01-03 06:31:11 · update #1
More water pressure downstairs than up because of the weight of water in the pipes.
2007-01-03 06:06:18 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Flowrate is a function of pressure drop. The higher the pressure drop, the higher the flowrate. The function is actually second order.
In the case of your faucets, the pressure drop is the difference in pressure in the pipes vs the air pressure outside the pipes.
The difference in air pressure between 1st and second floors of a house is a function of the weight of the air between the two faucets. let's assume this is negligible. Why is that by the way? (hint. 1 ft air is about 0.0006 psi)
The difference in water pressure (dP) inside the pipes, however, is not negligible. it is a function of the height of the water above the ground level faucet. 1 ft of water = 0.4 psi . Say the difference in height is 10 ft. That's about a 4 psi difference between faucets. Most homes have water pressure around 60 psi. Atmospheric pressure is about 14 psi. So dP on the upper level is about 46 psi. On the lower floor it would be about 50 psi. Or about 8% higher. That translates to roughly a 30% higher flowrate. So if we say your water flows at 4 gallons per minute upstairs, it would probably flow at about 5 gallons per minute downstairs. Provided, of course, that you do not have flow restriction inserts in your faucets like most modern homes do.
2007-01-03 07:25:47 · answer #2 · answered by Dr W 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's because there is greater water pressure coming out of the downstairs tap. Imagine a milk carton filled with water. If you punch three holes in it straight up the side, the bottom hole will shoot the water out farther and faster than the middle or top hole will because of the greater pressure.
2007-01-03 06:08:07 · answer #3 · answered by Maverick 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
simple. downstairs tap has more water pressure
2007-01-03 06:11:36 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
um was that a seroius question? water takes time to go up pipes and hte downstairs is closer to the pump. u know, goin against the thing called gravity.
2007-01-03 06:14:35 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
because water pressure is higher the closer you are to the source...the higher you go, the farther away you are from the source...basic physics
2007-01-03 06:15:59 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋