Shut-Off Valve Problems

Shut-off valves control the flow of water in a house.

Water shut-off valves allow homeowners to control the flow of water in the home. Typically, you have a shut-off valve for the main shut-off at the water meter and then at every fixture. Shut-off valves come in steel, brass or PVC. Due to the corrosive nature of water, these valves and their parts will eventually fail.

Washers

If a washer fails, the shut-off valve will leak. Replacing the rubber washer in a valve entails the removal of the valve wheel and then the valve stem. After the removal of the valve stem, unscrew the small screw at the end of the valve stem to remove the washer.

Valve Packing

Loose or old packing allows water to leak out of the valve from around the packing nut. Try to tighten the packing nut under the valve wheel first before replacing the valve packing. If this does not work, loosen the packing nut and remove the old packing. Wrap new Teflon packing around the nut, and then retighten the packing nut.

Replacing a Valve

Shut-off valves sometimes becomes so old and deteriorated that they freeze. Water corrodes valves so that they eventually develop bad leaks. If this happens, replace the entire valve.

References

• Plumbing 1-2-3, John P. Holms, 2001