ELK-WSV You Really Do Need It

[signal15]

I had been considering the WSV before, but the cost is prohibitive. Has anyone ever installed a sprinkler valve on their water line coming into the house and wired it to a Elk relay? I was thinking that the M1G could look at water sensors and if they were triggered, it could shut the water valve. Are there any advantages to the WSV over this method?

Sprinkler valves are junk. You'd be more likely to have your house flood by putting one of those in. I've walked outside before and seen those things spraying water because they cracked for no apparent reason.

 

[signal15]

That "may" work looking at the specs. It is not made of the same materials as the ELK but it is possible cheaper alternative.

Good find if it does work.

It's only 3/4". The ELK valve is 1". My house has 1" trunk lines and a 1" to the sprinkler system, so a 3/4" service valve would restrict flow.

 

[nov0798]

1"
http://www.valvestore.com/prodinfo.asp?number=552108

http://www.valvestore.com/prodinfo.asp?number=560108

Other valves they offer

http://www.valvestore.com/products.asp?dept=1489

And Stainless, just like the Elk.

http://www.valvestore.com/prodinfo.asp?number=552308

http://www.valvestore.com/products.asp?dept=1486

Stainless really doesnt matter! Most likely the pressure regulator, and all the faucets n your house is brass anyway, but if you must!

 

[Kevin L]

These valves look nice, but they take 4x longer to close the valve completely. I do like the IP65 enclosure.

 

[jrmahler]

Sprinkler valves outside and sprinkler valves inside are two different scenarios. Outside, they are more likely to freeze and crack if installed improperly. Inside, I would hope that is not the case....still makes me nervous, which is why I haven't done it.

One other thought that I had was that a WSV will only stop the water if a leak is detected. Has anyone installed a flow meter on their water line to shut off a pump or close a valve when the flow goes over a certain amount, has a large enough step change, or sees flow in an Away or Night mode condition?

Also, for those of us with wells, a cheaper alternative to shutting a $500 valve would be to install a relay and shut off the pump instead.

 

[electron]

I have a water meter installed as well (but not monitoring it yet), but I don't think it will help much with minor/slow leaks. I do plan to shut down the water main should water movement be detected when not expected, just need to create the rules.

 

[nov0798]

These valves look nice, but they take 4x longer to close the valve completely. I do like the IP65 enclosure.

Well the issue seemed to be price, more than time it took to turn the water off.

 

[Kevin L]

Well the issue seemed to be price, more than time it took to turn the water off.

No question. Those valves look quite capable. I just wanted to point out the difference in the motor speed. If you have a pipe burst, a lot of water can flow in the additional time.

I'm going to look at these valves mainly because of the weatherproof feature. Since I have a slab, I have limited access to the main line inside. I do have access outside. I was going to look into a weatherproof housing for the Elk valve.

Kevin

 

[Quixote_1]

It's only 3/4". The ELK valve is 1". My house has 1" trunk lines and a 1" to the sprinkler system, so a 3/4" service valve would restrict flow.

While researching irrigation systems I found that you would only restrict the flow in that scenario if the length of 3/4" pipe was over a certain number of inches (less than a foot, I think). I will try to find the site that discusses the principle behind it.

Edit:
I can't find the section that I thought I remembered. I think I may have jumped the gun when I "disputed" your flow restriction statement. It's been a long time since I read the site, and I don't feel like reading it in it's entirety now. If you feel like checking it out it's a very informative read.
Take a look at the section at the bottom here: http://www.irrigationtutorials.com/sprinkler10.htm there is some great info on shutoff valves at the bottom of the page.

 

[Quixote_1]

...and here is the part that I was referring to:
(highlighted near the bottom in yellow)

I was a little off because he is talking about a section of pipe, not a valve, and the relevant length is 5 feet.

 

[signal15]

Those valves posted above, while they do take 12 seconds to open or close, are also rated for natural gas and propane. Might be an interesting use to be able to shut off the gas main if your gas leak detector went off.