Hot Tub Plumbing

Gate and Ball Valves

Gate and ball valves are designed to shut off the flow of water in a pipe And are used to isolate equipment or regulate water flow, especially rlere the equipment is installed below the water level of the hot tub.

There are basically two designs of shut-off valves. In the gate valve, as the name implies, a disk-shaped gate inside a housing slides or screws into place across the diameter of the pipe, shutting off water flow. A variation of this is the slide valve, where a simple guillotine-like plate is pushed into place across the diameter of the pipe.

The other design is the ball valve, where the valve housing contains a ball with a hole in it of similar diameter as the pipe. A handle on the valve turns the ball so the hole aligns with the pipe, allowing water flow, or aligns across the pipe, blocking flow. In all these designs, flow can be controlled by degree as well as by total on or total off.

Slide and ball valves are simple to operate and rarely break down. Repairs or parts replacement will be obvious. The gate valve, however, is operated by a handle that drives a worm-screw style shaft inside a threaded gate. If the gate sticks from obstruction and too much force is applied to the handle, the screw threads will strip out, making the valve useless. The valve cap (also called the bonnet) can be unscrewed, and the drive gear/gate can be removed and repaired or replaced without removing the entire valve housing. Most plumbing supply houses sell these replacement "guts," but the parts from one manufacturer are not interchangeable with those of another.

Sometimes just tightening the bonnet nut will stop leaks, but you may need to replace the 0-rings on the shaft, which are designed to prevent leaks in this location.

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