Water is important in every area, it is invaluable for life, but also for a number of important industrial processes. In plants, it is the main technological factor that must be properly controlled, especially its flow. This is crucial for safety and continuity of production. To circulate it or close its flow, special solutions are needed, such as water valves. And this is what we will talk about in the article below. We encourage you to read it.
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How does a water gate valve work?
A water gate valve is composed of several elements: a body, a pin and a wedge. The wedge gate valve is of key importance here, changing the position of the working element, the wedge described above. It can be raised or lowered by the rotational movement of the spindle. This type of valve opening is called multi-turn, which prevents water hammer.
Water gate valves can have different designs, which determines how the stem works. In this respect, we can distinguish two types of gate valves: with a non-rising stem and a rising stem. In the case of the first option, the stem is located inside the valve body, thanks to which it is screwed into the gate wedge, which raises or lowers it in the body. This means that this solution can be used in any place where there is less space above the valve. They are therefore suitable for use in the entire hydraulic system, for underground and surface installation. Most gate valves are designed this way.
However, manufacturers also offer a second type of gate valves - with a rising stem, especially for applications related not only to water, but also to sewage and fire protection. It is also worth knowing that in addition to flanged gate valves (i.e. mounted to pipeline flanges), socket gate valves are also offered. They are mainly used to connect fittings to cast iron and steel pipes, but also to plastic pipes such as PE and PVC.
What material should a water gate valve be made of?
It is very important that they are made of solid materials. Gray cast iron is usually used to produce the body, although ductile cast iron can also be used. The pin is also solid, because it is made of stainless steel, and the same as the wedge - made of cast iron or brass. It is additionally covered with rubber, which ensures sealing (cover gasket), which is particularly important in the case of closing the flow of the medium through the valve.
Commercially available wedge gate valves come with a hard or soft seal, but the soft wedge seal is definitely the more popular type. Hard, so-called metal/metal is mainly used for aggressive working media, for example in chemical pipelines. Remember that gate valves with exceptional tightness should be used to cut off the flow. For water applications, it is best to use EPDM material. However, if air and contaminated water are used in systems, NBR rubber is much better.
In what installations will a water gate valve be used?
A water gate valve is a very important structure, which is why it is used in many tasks, especially where the most important aspects are minimal pressure loss and full, uninterrupted flow. It is no accident that they are used in many different areas, such as the chemical, energy, mining, heating and water treatment industries.
Of course, wedge gate valves have different parameters, so always pay attention to the most important features and purpose of a specific type in order to choose the right model. It is also worth paying attention to the nominal pressure, which differentiates gate valves, thanks to which they can be classified into low-, medium- and high-pressure groups. In general, gate valves are suitable for operating conditions in a wide temperature range, from -29 to +425 degrees Celsius. This shows that they can be used in both underground and above-ground installations.
How to properly install a water valve?
Gate valves are installed both on each branch of the network, immediately after the branch point, as well as on water supply connections and in front of the network fittings. However, in order for them to serve the way they were designed for this purpose, we should know how to install them properly.
- First of all, we must take into account the entire network system, i.e. not only the main pipeline, but also adjacent sections and nodes. So let's remember about other pipes in the network.
- The gates are placed first at the nodes and only then between the nodes.
- Pipes can be of different sizes, so if we have such pipelines, the larger one should be separated from the smaller pipeline with a gate valve.
- Moreover, the distribution pipeline should be separated from the main pipeline with a gate valve.
- You also need to remember about fire hazard issues. For this reason, the gate valves should be arranged in such a way that it is not necessary to close more than five gate valves to turn off one section of the water supply network.
- The recommendations say that gate valves on pipelines should be spaced at appropriate intervals, from 200 to 400 m, however, on main pipelines this distance must be greater, amounting to 500-700 m. This arrangement of pipes should be adhered to.
- It is also worth knowing that socket gate valves are used for underground installation, but flanged gate valves are not suitable for direct installation in the ground. This is due to corrosion of the screws. It is best to mount them above the ground. Optionally, use galvanized screws.
- It is also extremely important to install the valves in a vertical position. If the manufacturer allows it, they can also be installed in a horizontal position, i.e. lying down. Under no circumstances should we install them in an upside-down position.
Water valves at the Onninen wholesaler
We have almost reached the end of the article, learning along the way what is most important about water gates. Now we will recommend some proven solutions.
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One of them is the AEON wedge EcoValve water gate valve, flanged DN50, PN16 , short F4, soft-sealed, EPDM, designed for the transmission of drinking water, purified municipal sewage and other non-aggressive media. Provides perfect tightness. - Another interesting proposition is the AEON wedge EcoValve water gate valve, threaded DN40, PN16 , GW 1 1/2", connection, soft-sealed, EPDM - for home connections, made of solid ductile cast iron. Dimensions: length - 0.293 m, width - 0. 16 m, height - 0.12 m, weight - 5.328 kg, volume - 0.006 m3.
- And one more proposition - the Bohamet F4 DN150 flanged water gate valve with a soft seal - used to cut off the water flow in water supply networks and installations for drinking water or non-aggressive liquids.
So we see how important a role water gate valves play in regulating pressure and flow. We hope that we have explained the most important issues on this topic in the above article!