In plumbing, there isn’t just a single option to pick from when considering which valve is best for your plumbing. To start off, you should first know the types of valves before choosing the best one to suit your needs. Let’s start, shall we? There are 5 main valves that are used in plumbing.
Gate Valve
Gate valves are built with a metal gate that is wedge-shaped that will be used to stop or open the flow of water. The metal gate can be raised or lowered and is used to allow the flow of water. This valve is probably the most widely used in the world of plumbing. Gate valves are highly useful as they are able to handle many types of fluids like water, gas, oil and many more. These valves cannot control the amount of water that flows and can only control whether the water flows or not.
Ball Valves
Ball valves are also known as ball float valves and are the most commonly used in areas where the amount of water can be controlled. This is because this valve is built to control the amount of water that flows. This valve has a rotating spherical object that is connected to a lever that is used as a handle to operate the valve. These valves are usually found in water tanks. The easiest example I can give you is the valve that is found in toilets. The valves in toilets are used to control the water level. Once the water in the tank rises to a certain level, the valve will close and stop the water flow.
Butterfly Valves
Butterfly Valves are valves that have metal discs that rotate. These valves are capable of allowing and stopping the flow of water. Butterfly valves are built to be light and compact as well as shorter than the other valves. These valves were once used only for water applications but are currently used for various other fluids. These valves are almost always found in chemical plant industries.
Globe Valves
Globe valves are valves that are used to regulate both the flow as well as the pressure of water. These valves have a stopper that is raised and lowered to control the water. As these valves are used in areas that require regular adjustments, they can usually be found in plant piping. For instance, commercial water sprinklers are used by farmers for large scale farming.
Pressure Relief Valves
These valves are built for plumbing systems that require strict control over the pressure and limit of water. These valves can also be called pressure safety valves as it ensures that the piping system doesn’t burst. These valves are equipped with safety measures and can handle gas, steam, air and liquid. These valves can be found in oil and gas industries as well as power generation industries.
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