Wolverhampton Plumbing Tips

Q. The hot tap on the bathroom basin has to be turned 2 or 3 turns before it will start running. What could be wrong?

You need to change the washer. Check if you have isolation valves in the pipework just under the bottom of the tap. Isolation valves on the pipework to all your taps, toilets and showers make things so much easier. If you are having any plumbing problems you can just turn off the water to that fitting without having to turn off the supply to the whole house.

If you haven’t got an isolation valve to the hot tap and the hot water is supplied from a storage cistern you will find a gate valve situated in the pipework coming down from the cold water cistern above the hot water cylinder, (usually in the loft). The valve is just above the hot water cylinder. Be careful with this valve if it has never been used; they can seize up and you don’t need a lot of pressure to snap the spindle where it connects to the disc. Gate valves really need to be open and closed every few months to stop them seizing up. Now, if it snaps in the open position or it won’t close then close the isolation valve in the pipework just before the float valve on your cold tank. If there is no isolation valve then tie up the ball cock on the cold tank to stop the cold feed. Turn on the hot taps to drain down the cold cistern. You can now fit a new gate valve or, better still, a full bore lever valve; they cost a few pounds more than a gate valve but are far more reliable and easier to operate. (Your Wolverhampton plumber prefers this option.) You can now change the washer on your hot water tap.

If you break the gate valve when it is in the closed position then the best option is to carry out the above procedure to stop the cold water supply to the cistern. Then get a hose pipe and run from the cistern to the bath or toilet and syphon the water out. You can then change the gate valve and the tap washer.

See How To Change a Tap Washer

Gate Valve	Full Bore Lever Valve	Isolation Valve

Best advice from your Wolverhampton Plumber – fit isolation valves to all your fittings it makes general maintenance and repairs easier and simpler.

All of these plumbing fittings are available from Screwfix Direct

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