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Sweat soldering ball valve

I just had to do this several times a few months ago. I cleaned the valve and pipe well with a wire brush made for the job, used plenty of flux, and heated the joint quickly. I use an air/acetylene torch for plumbing work because it's so fast. Make sure the torch you use is big enough for the job. Heating the joint fast and getting the solder in quickly gives the heat less time to travel to the rest of the valve. The brass that the valve is made of transmits heat much slower than pure copper so this is why fast heating is best. ERS

Reply to
etpm
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Was recommended by a plumber to never a put valve in a horizontal orientation if you can help it. Horizontal orientation allows sediment to settle in the valve and can result in binding or less-than-full closure. Vertical orientation always results in sediment falling to the bottom of the vertical run.

FYI,

Reply to
John E.

That's just silly. If there's enough sediment in your water for that to be a concern, you should be filtering it where it enters the house.

Reply to
Doug Miller

Sounds reasonable Gerry :-)} London, Canada

Reply to
Gerald Miller

Got any Iron pipe in your house? Gerry :-)} London, Canada

Reply to
Gerald Miller

Actually, no. All the supply lines are copper; the drains are copper and plastic. I've had homes with steel pipe, though -- and never, ever saw a problem with sediment causing a valve to bind.

Reply to
Doug Miller

What he said, a 1/2 open valve will destory the seals. Do not operate the valve untill fully cooled.

Again dead on, heat enough for the solder to flow, but don't over heat it.

More good advice. Thank You, Randy

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Reply to
Randy

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