How does a reticulation valve work

The water pressure is lessened on the top side of the valve allowing the water source to force the diaphram up The reverse happens when the valve is closed. PSLawnService , May 16, My valves have no power available to them in the winter since I unplug the transformer. And they stay closed. Like others said. If it was the opposite, then whenever the power went out everybodys lawn sprinklers system would turn on.

I only need mine 6 months out of the year so I disconnect power to save the eqipment and a tiny bit of power. First answer - How does the water get into the upper chamber in the first place? The solenoid stops the flow from the lower chamber lowering the pressure, the manual bleed releases water from the upper chamber thereby lowering the pressure. PSLawnService , May 17, To rayh 78, Do you leave your water turned on?

If you turn your water off, how do you know if the valve is open or closed?? My entire response to rayh 78 did not appear in the post. Water pressure is required to open and close a valve. Electricity is just the automated way. Turning off the electricity will NOT open the valves.

Note- Valves under water pressure will stay shut and not to confuse things here valves without pressure will stay shut. The slight pressure from the diaphram spring is the deciding factor. Take the spring out and the valve will not work no matter what. Lowering the water pressure in the upper chamber is what opens the valve. I think we have beat this topic to death. To jimbo, You are right because an activated solenoid retracts.

Joined: Mar 7, Location: CA. Is it OK to use this part of the valve to throttle the flow down a little? Just want to make sure I'm not hurting the valve, or reducing its lifespan. Keep on adjusting. Turn it down, then back off a bit. Valves will close more reliably, and probably last longer.

This style is used primarily in the emergency shut-off valve. It is the most popular style used because it is an inexpensive choice. The problem is that they also tend to need repair or maintenance after a short period of time.

When this gate is closed, the water will not run through the waterline. The ball valve is well suited to work in the emergency shut-off valve as well. These tend to be more expensive than the gate valve, but they are also durable enough to be used in commercial sprinklers. A ball valve controls the water flow with a rotary ball with a bore. When you rotate the ball 90 degrees around its axis to open the valve, the water will run through the bore.

This is usually done with a small handle on the valve that you screw open or closed by hand. These valves can start, stop, and regulate the pressure and flow of the water to a zone in your lawn.

Globe valves have specific directions of water flow. They have a globe-shaped body, a flat piece, and a ring that the flat piece fits inside to stop the flow of water. When the globe-shaped body fits down inside the ring, the water flow is entirely restricted. Whether you want a drip or deluge, this device will control the amount of water flowing to the sprinklers in that zone in your lawn.

With the globe valve, one problem is the requirement of installing a backflow preventer so that your water source will not be contaminated. These valves are typically installed under the ground and housed in a valve box for protection. They are available in sizes from small to very large, depending upon your specific needs.

The angle valve is primarily used as a control valve. It is equipped with the same features as the globe valve with one specific difference. The difference is that the angle valve is constructed with an inlet at its base. This inlet creates a right angle 90 degrees between the inlet and outlet pipes. If you intend to work this into your irrigation system, you must also install the backflow preventer separately to prevent contamination.

The angle valve is usually installed below the ground and housed in a valve box for protection from the elements. The anti-siphon valve works by employing a small air vent on the downstream side of the valve. Air will enter the pipe and resists any siphon effect. The most common valve for in-ground irrigation systems is the solenoid. Each solenoid valve controls the sprinkler heads in a specific zone of your lawn or garden. A good understanding of how these valves work will prove beneficial if the sprinklers ever need to be repaired.

The process of opening solenoid valves starts at the controller. Controllers are attached to a set of these valves that are buried in a box at the beginning of the system. The main water source is tapped into the box. The controller tells each valve when to open and for how long. A solenoid valve has a diaphragm that opens to allow water to flow through the pipeline to the sprinkler heads. When the solenoid coil that the wire is attached to is not energized, the diaphragm will remain closed.

When the moment comes for a particular zone of your lawn to be watered, an electrical signal is sent from the controller. The moment that electrical signal reaches the solenoid coil, there is an electromagnetic field created in the valve. Once the coil is energized, the resulting magnetic field is responsible for opening the diaphragm of the valve. That electrical signal from the controller is programmed to be active at a specific time of day and for a particular duration. The occurring pressure in the pipeline will raise the sprinkler heads and your lawn will receive the liquid refreshment it requires.

When that prescribed time is exhausted, the controller will break the electronic connection with the solenoid coil. That disconnection will remove the electromagnetic field from the valve and cause the diaphragm to close and the water will no longer flow to that zone. The valve is electronically triggered, using three 9V batteries to activate a solenoid. These diagrams and descriptions from The Spudgun Technology Center do a great job of explaining the clever trickery of the sprinkler valve.

I think the inlets and outlets is reversed in the diagram. That diagrams ok. John Edgar Park likes to make things and tell people about it. He builds project for Adafruit Industries. You can find him at jpixl.