I replaced it only four years ago with one of these:
http://www.screwfix.com/p/bottom-ent...ll-valve/52836
yet it is now starting to drip slightly.

A neighbour once told me that this hard water area plays havoc with
ball valves as even a little piece of grit or limescale can lodge in
the valve and cause it to fail. Is this true?

Can I unscrew the large blue cap (see Screwfix product picture above)
and clean out the innards? (I have an isolating valve on the water
inlet.) Or is another replacement needed? Sure, it's only a fiver or
thereabouts, but do these things need replacing every FOUR years?

In article ,
MM writes:
I replaced it only four years ago with one of these:
http://www.screwfix.com/p/bottom-ent...ll-valve/52836
yet it is now starting to drip slightly.

A neighbour once told me that this hard water area plays havoc with
ball valves as even a little piece of grit or limescale can lodge in
the valve and cause it to fail. Is this true?

Can I unscrew the large blue cap (see Screwfix product picture above)
and clean out the innards? (I have an isolating valve on the water

Yes, and certainly worth a try. You can dissolve off any scale
with descaler or vinegar. It might be some grit from the mains.

You can get replacement diaphram washers for them too.
Note that there are one or two tiny holes in the washer by design.

inlet.) Or is another replacement needed? Sure, it's only a fiver or
thereabouts, but do these things need replacing every FOUR years?

That's on the short side, but depends on usage.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

On Sat, 05 Apr 2014 08:50:10 +0100, MM wrote:

A neighbour once told me that this hard water area plays havoc with
ball valves as even a little piece of grit or limescale can lodge in
the valve and cause it to fail. Is this true?

Or a bit of crud coming in with the supply after works on the main or
building work in your place that opens up the cold supply pipe work.

Can I unscrew the large blue cap (see Screwfix product picture above)
and clean out the innards?

Yes, isolate first... B-) Examin the the washer where the nozzle
sits and see if there is a moulding flash or something that is
causing damamge.

You can get kits of replacement disphram washers etc rather than
replace the whole assembly. A kit froma shed may well be comparable
in price to whole new valve but it'll be a quicker and simpler job
just swapping parts.

--
Cheers
Dave.

On Sat, 5 Apr 2014 09:48:02 +0000 (UTC), Andrew Gabriel wrote:

Note that there are one or two tiny holes in the washer by design.

The OP linked to an ordinary plastic ball valve not an equilibrium
valve.

Diaphragm washers for ordinary ball valves don't have holes, or at
least the one I have doesn't...

--
Cheers
Dave.

On 05/04/2014 08:50, MM wrote:
I replaced it only four years ago with one of these:
http://www.screwfix.com/p/bottom-ent...ll-valve/52836
yet it is now starting to drip slightly.

A neighbour once told me that this hard water area plays havoc with
ball valves as even a little piece of grit or limescale can lodge in
the valve and cause it to fail. Is this true?

Can I unscrew the large blue cap (see Screwfix product picture above)
and clean out the innards? (I have an isolating valve on the water
inlet.) Or is another replacement needed? Sure, it's only a fiver or
thereabouts, but do these things need replacing every FOUR years?

That sort's not very clever at the best of times because the floatation
force of the ball puts a big bending load on the vertical tube. Does
yours have an adjustable screw to react this force against the cistern
casing? If so, make sure it's correctly adjusted and also adjust the
water level down a bit to give a bit more leeway before it overflows.

If you *do* replace it, don't do a like for like but use one of these
instead.
http://www.screwfix.com/p/fluidmaste...valve-uk/84007
--
Cheers,
Roger
____________
Please reply to Newsgroup. Whilst email address is valid, it is seldom
checked.

"Andrew Gabriel" wrote in message
...
In article ,
MM writes:
I replaced it only four years ago with one of these:
http://www.screwfix.com/p/bottom-ent...ll-valve/52836
yet it is now starting to drip slightly.

A neighbour once told me that this hard water area plays havoc with
ball valves as even a little piece of grit or limescale can lodge in
the valve and cause it to fail. Is this true?

Can I unscrew the large blue cap (see Screwfix product picture above)
and clean out the innards? (I have an isolating valve on the water

Yes, and certainly worth a try. You can dissolve off any scale
with descaler or vinegar. It might be some grit from the mains.

You can get replacement diaphram washers for them too.
Note that there are one or two tiny holes in the washer by design.

Surely those tiny holes are inevitably going to be a problem in hard water
areas ?

inlet.) Or is another replacement needed? Sure, it's only a fiver or
thereabouts, but do these things need replacing every FOUR years?

That's on the short side, but depends on usage.

On Sat, 05 Apr 2014 19:51:41 +0100, Roger Mills
wrote:

On 05/04/2014 08:50, MM wrote:
I replaced it only four years ago with one of these:
http://www.screwfix.com/p/bottom-ent...ll-valve/52836
yet it is now starting to drip slightly.

A neighbour once told me that this hard water area plays havoc with
ball valves as even a little piece of grit or limescale can lodge in
the valve and cause it to fail. Is this true?

Can I unscrew the large blue cap (see Screwfix product picture above)
and clean out the innards? (I have an isolating valve on the water
inlet.) Or is another replacement needed? Sure, it's only a fiver or
thereabouts, but do these things need replacing every FOUR years?

That sort's not very clever at the best of times because the floatation
force of the ball puts a big bending load on the vertical tube. Does
yours have an adjustable screw to react this force against the cistern
casing? If so, make sure it's correctly adjusted and also adjust the
water level down a bit to give a bit more leeway before it overflows.

If you *do* replace it, don't do a like for like but use one of these
instead.
http://www.screwfix.com/p/fluidmaste...valve-uk/84007

I'm using the side entry versions which replaced the old fashioned
ball float valves in the upstairs loo low level cistern and the attic
hot water header tank.

http://www.screwfix.com/p/fluidmaster-side-entry-fill-valve/85797#

Seems to be an exact match to the ones bought a few years ago from a
B&Q shed.

I've already replaced the one in the loo on account it suddenly took
to spraying the water out of the top cap after a year or so instead of
via the down pointing outlet pipe and forcing the sideways spray into
the lid join, resulting in drippage from the cistern.

The replacement did the same thing about a year later but I decided
not to play the 'rental' game and used an aluminium foil pie tray to
act as a shield. There doesn't seem to be an obvious reason for this
sudden change in behaviour, nor any way to disassemble it for repair
or maintenance. Aside from this oddity, it still functions perfectly
fine as a fill level control valve.

I've still got the original as a spare. Does anyone know if they can
be taken apart for repair or maintenance?
--
Regards, J B Good

On Sat, 05 Apr 2014 19:51:41 +0100, Roger Mills
wrote:

If you *do* replace it, don't do a like for like but use one of these
instead.
http://www.screwfix.com/p/fluidmaste...valve-uk/84007

Weird looking thing... is the float the round black cylinder thingy,
sliding up the pole, so to speak?

But worth considering, thanks.

On 06/04/2014 07:31, . wrote:
On Sat, 05 Apr 2014 19:51:41 +0100, Roger
wrote:

If you *do* replace it, don't do a like for like but use one of these
instead.
http://www.screwfix.com/p/fluidmaste...valve-uk/84007

Weird looking thing... is the float the round black cylinder thingy,
sliding up the pole, so to speak?


Yes

But worth considering, thanks.

They seem to work ok.
--
Cheers,
Roger
____________
Please reply to Newsgroup. Whilst email address is valid, it is seldom
checked.

On Saturday, 5 April 2014 20:14:02 UTC+1, Rod Speed wrote:

You can get replacement diaphram washers for them too.

Note that there are one or two tiny holes in the washer by design.

Surely those tiny holes are inevitably going to be a problem in hard water
areas ?

You'd be forgiven for thinking so but I've found them not to be an issue despite have all sorts of limescale-related issues elsewhere.

Perhaps it's the flexibility of the diaphragm and the material it is made of that stops the limescale attaching.

--
Mathew Newton