"Frozen" gate valves

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  • wayneb301
    wayneb301 Posts: 134
    edited June 28

    To disconnect the lower one, and to avoid damaging that partition fitting, the partition fitting should be braced by a wrench while the hex nut is being wrenched on, but why does the partition fitting not provide a gripping area for a pipe wrench?

  • hot_rod
    hot_rod Posts: 28,585

    I’m not sure they designed for this type of repair

    The valve you want to work on is not part if that meter yoke assembly

    Bob "hot rod" Rohr
    trainer for Caleffi NA
    Living the hydronic dream
  • wayneb301
    wayneb301 Posts: 134

    So the letter on one of the handles is "Ford".

    The swivel cup should be part of the interesting valve, not part of the isolation fitting. But there are no hex part on the fitting to match the swivel cups, so I'm puzzled how this was assembled initially

    IMG20260627151709.jpg IMG20260627151812.jpg
  • hot_rod
    hot_rod Posts: 28,585
    edited June 28

    the meter yoke itself is all preassembled. You can buy various valve types to add on to the yoke, from Ford.

    Then the installing plumber added that gate valve, and connections on the other end to the building supply line. So it is just an assembly of various Ford components.

    This looks like the valve you have, swivel nut with EPDM washer on one end, pipe thread on the other. All these parts and info are at the www.fordmeterbox.com website

    Regardless of what type or quality of valve you buy, unless they get used, exercised from time to time, the minerals in the water will cause them to stick in one position.

    Those Ford valves are just a tapered brass plug inside the brass body, a fairly simplistic design.

    As brass ages it tends to get brittle, so those top levers can shear off easily.

    I don’t see a lot of need for those valves, just replace the gate valve and leave them alone. If you start twisting and wrenching on the yoke or valves, you may cause damage.

    Contact the water supplier, maybe they would supply a new assembly. You will need to somehow shut off the water supply to do any work on this, so you need to involve whoever supplies the water to the building.

    Once the water is off, this would be a simple repair job for an experienced plumber, just a few threaded joints.

    IMG_1561.jpeg
    Bob "hot rod" Rohr
    trainer for Caleffi NA
    Living the hydronic dream
    wayneb301
  • wayneb301
    wayneb301 Posts: 134
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1899292#Comment_1899292

    It took a plumber only 30 minutes to replace it with a ball valve. He was able to bend the incoming copper tubing in one hand.

    IMG_20261009_15063789.jpeg

    The assembly below was recommended by Ford, but the plumbers do not agree with that approach.

    1000129998.png
  • pecmsg
    pecmsg Posts: 7,621

    a sewer line directly under potable water?

  • wayneb301
    wayneb301 Posts: 134
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1905921#Comment_1905921

    The water pipe is about 1ft above the sewer pipe. The sewer pipe is visible in the photo because the plumber removed the soils when replacing the valve. He put back the soils after the installation was done.

  • psb75
    psb75 Posts: 1,175

    Oh, its a "soil" pipe then.

  • wayneb301
    wayneb301 Posts: 134
    edited October 11

    There is not another shut off valve (curb stop) before this valve. And the plumber said freezing is not good for aged copper tubing. So he opened the sewer trap, applied some pipe dope on the female threads of the new valve, disconnected the old valve, then quickly fitted the new valve that stopped the water. No time to wrap teflon and sealant on the male threads. I believe it is the common practice. But the running water would simply flush away most of the pipe dope before the new valve could get fitted in position.

    Does this approach affect a lasting water tight seal?

    IMG_20261011_133631.jpg
  • pecmsg
    pecmsg Posts: 7,621

    plumber said freezing is not good for aged copper 

    1st time I’ve ever heard that

  • wayneb301
    wayneb301 Posts: 134
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1906085#Comment_1906085

    In his first visit, I mentioned aged tubing will be harder and brittle, maybe he was just accommodating my concerns.

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