Replacing the stopcock?

[BraileTrail]

Hi,

The main cold water stopcock in my house is old and stiff and weeps for a while after it has been turned on or off. Are there any disadvantages to inserting a new quarter turn ball valve above the existing stopcock? There is also a drain c*ck above the existing stopcock which I would move above the ball valve.

I presume the drain c*ck is there to let out the water in the pipes above the stopcock and it would be a goo idea to do this before I cut out a section of pipe for the new ball valve?

Thanks, BraileTrail

[Andy Hall]

Only that it might start weeping continuously at some point. If you can turn off the street main, then I would take this one out altogether.

Yep.

.andy

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[BraileTrail]

In message , Andy Hall writes

I thought that as well, but I can't find anything obvious in the street. I will have a word with the neighbours to see if they know where it might be.

So there is no problem having the quarter turn ball valve as the main "stopcock" then?

Thanks, BraileTrail

[Bob Eager]

Ours is out the back, near our side gate (inside the gate). Just a thought.

No...I had one fitted by the water company since it was going to be a sod of a job, and the main stopcock serves another property too so I was anxious to minimise 'off time'. It's fine, and dead easy to operate!

[Set Square]

Can't see any reason for not having a quarter turn ball valve. Presumably it is full bore, and not restricted when open?

With regard to the weeping with the existing stop tap - I presume that this is round the spindle? Have you tried tightening the gland nut, or re-packing the gland with hemp or similar?

[BraileTrail]

In message , Set Square writes

Yep.

It was pretty stiff to operate to start with that just made it worse. Partly I just want to replace it with a nice shiny ball valve. :-)

Thanks, BraileTrail

[John]

[Christian McArdle]

Absolutely. I was in exactly your position, but the old stopcock would only turn off a little. It went from gushing to flowing steadily at the kitchen tap. We cut the pipework above the old stopcock and jammed a new section of pipe with a quarter turn valve on it. The amount of water that came out was surprisingly little, really, when you work quickly. Then we opened up the original stopcock and whacked in loads of gland packing.

I'd always use a full bore quarter turn lever ball valve. Every other type of valve is crap. How the Europeans must laugh at our sticky leaky gate valves.

Christian.

P.S. Buy a decent branded valve for this application. I went for Pegler. It's not somewhere to make compromises.

[Lurch]

The Comap ones have longer handles, sometimes easier to use in an emergency. Still quality ones though.

SJW A.C.S. Ltd.