poorboywilly
New Member
The handle has stripped off the main shutoff valve inside my house. I'm looking to replace it but there are a couple issues I'm considering.
First is the fact that the supply line here is copper, while most of the house is plumbed with galvanized. Currently installed is a stop and waste valve with copper sweat connections on each side, and above the valve is a sweat to MIP adapter that is connected directly to the galvanized pipe that leads to the rest of the house. I do not want to reinstall copper on galvanized like this as I wish to avoid galvanic corrosion.
Second, this valve is located in a subfloor crawlspace which requires a minute to access and it gets rather cold in the winter. Also right above this valve is a tee, one side which leads to a stop a waste valve and then an exterior hose bib. This location froze and broke over the winter, but there is an electric heat tape installed now to avoid this in the future.
First question. Initially I was going to install a dielectric union to transition from the copper to the galvanized. Now I'm thinking it would be better, both in terms of ease of installation and in reducing the chance for a leaking dielectric union in a somewhat difficult to access space, to use CPVC to transition between the metals. I'll screw (with thread seal) CPVC fittings onto a galvanized nipple on one end and a copper sweat to MIP adapter on the other end, with CPVC pipe between. Are there any disadvantages to this approach? Is CPVC okay with the electric heat tape? Any code issues that could be involved here?
Second question, what kind of valve should I put here? Should I use a CPVC valve, or should I put a brass valve on the copper end and then transition? I like ball valves due to their ease of operation, do they have any disadvantage in this application?
Any other issues I haven't thought of or explored yet? Thanks for the help!
First is the fact that the supply line here is copper, while most of the house is plumbed with galvanized. Currently installed is a stop and waste valve with copper sweat connections on each side, and above the valve is a sweat to MIP adapter that is connected directly to the galvanized pipe that leads to the rest of the house. I do not want to reinstall copper on galvanized like this as I wish to avoid galvanic corrosion.
Second, this valve is located in a subfloor crawlspace which requires a minute to access and it gets rather cold in the winter. Also right above this valve is a tee, one side which leads to a stop a waste valve and then an exterior hose bib. This location froze and broke over the winter, but there is an electric heat tape installed now to avoid this in the future.
First question. Initially I was going to install a dielectric union to transition from the copper to the galvanized. Now I'm thinking it would be better, both in terms of ease of installation and in reducing the chance for a leaking dielectric union in a somewhat difficult to access space, to use CPVC to transition between the metals. I'll screw (with thread seal) CPVC fittings onto a galvanized nipple on one end and a copper sweat to MIP adapter on the other end, with CPVC pipe between. Are there any disadvantages to this approach? Is CPVC okay with the electric heat tape? Any code issues that could be involved here?
Second question, what kind of valve should I put here? Should I use a CPVC valve, or should I put a brass valve on the copper end and then transition? I like ball valves due to their ease of operation, do they have any disadvantage in this application?
Any other issues I haven't thought of or explored yet? Thanks for the help!