DIY Icemaker Line Question

[Monks]

Hi guys,

I recently was given a very nice refrigerator which has an ice maker/water dispenser. I have run the 1/4" line from the back of the fridge to under my kitchen sink. Last night I tried to replace the shut-off valve for the cold water with one that had 2 outputs (1/2" for the kitchen sink and 1/4" for the fridge), but could NOT get the old valve off. Not sure if it's soldered or not, but it was spinning on the threads without really getting anywhere.

Now for my question: If, instead of doing it the way I mentioned above, I simply installed a 1/2" to 1/2" and 1/4" Y-splitter AFTER the shut-off valve but BEFORE the kitchen sink line, would I lose a significant amount of water pressure for the sink? It seems like it should only be noticable if someone is using the water supply on the fridge (or it's making an ice cube) WHILE the faucet is turned on.

Is this a bad idea?

Thanks for any and all replies/advice.

-Mike

[ironmike]

Mike,

I'm going to assume you have a standard sort of hook-up. By that, I mean the shutoff valve you tried to replace was 1/2" copper tubing, and the outlet is 3/8" OD (not 1/2"). You can do it the way you want, and you won't notice any pressure drop at all. It's not a "Y" splitter, is it? What you'll be using is a 3/8" x 3/8" x 1/4" compression tee. The disadvantage is that if you ever need to shut off the icemaker supply, you won't have cold water in the sink either.

I'm puzzled by your failure to remove the stop valve. You said it just kept spinning. Perhaps the stop valve was a compression type too. In that case, what you'd need to do is hold the big nut on the water pipe with a wrench, and then unscrew the valve from the nut. Then you could put that fancy two-way shutoff valve in its place.

[Monks]

Thanks a bunch for the comment. I ended up doing what you first suggested, only I added a 6" flex line to a 1/4" valve and THEN into the fridge, so I can shut it off if/when I disconnect it again without having to change everything out. It worked like a charm!

As far as the stop valve goes, i'm puzzled as well. I'm not going to worry about it though as it's a rental and the landlords have used cheap materials on everything else so it's not so much of a surprise.

Thanks again,

Mike