Are True Union Ball Valves Worth the Extra Cost?

Ball valves are a very common type of valve in piping systems. They are often the cheapest and easiest way to add on off control to a pipe line. For PVC ball valves there are two main types: one piece (compact) ball valves and true union ball valves.

Canada - One piece ball valves are exactly as they sound: the body of the valve is made from a single piece of plastic with a ball that rotates inside the body via a stem and handle. They are very common in many hardware stores and can be very cheap. The downside is that once installed they cannot be accessed without disassembling the piping system to remove the valve. If the valve is glued to the pipe then it is all but impossible to remove the valve. Due to their low cost one piece ball valves often use low quality material or poor design which can cause it to break more easily. Dirt inside the valve, UV degradation of the plastic or even just rough handling can cause the handle or stem to break. Alternatively if the valve doesn’t break it may start to leak overtime due to frequent use. Regardless of the reason once the valve has issues you may need to cut out the broken valve and replace some of the piping in your system to install a new valve.

True union ball valves have unions built into the ends of the valve to allow the body of the valve to be removed quickly and easily. Although true union ball valves are more expensive initially than one piece valves the extra up front cost is often worth it. If the valve breaks or starts to leak for any reason then the body of the valve can be quickly removed.  In many cases the problem can be fixed simply by cleaning the valve or replacing a low cost seal. If replacement is necessary then you could purchase the same brand valve as the original to be sure the replacement valve fits perfectly. As an added benefit the unions on the true union ball valve can be used as a disconnection point in your system to access other parts of your piping system.

Using true union valves can save you a lot of time and money in the long run: True union valves can be quickly removed for cleaning, inspection or replacement while one piece valves may require you to cut out the broken valve and purchase extra pipe and fittings to rebuild your system. As the pipe size increases this problem becomes worse. Larger replacement fittings are more expensive and the valve itself becomes more expensive, meaning that cleaning or refurbishing the valve becomes the cheaper option. Like many things in life, investing more in the initial purchase can save you money and headache in the long run.

Contact:
Petram PVC supply
336 Decaire St.Coquitlam, BC, Canada.
Email: sales@petrmpvc.ca
Tel: 604-800-5280
Website-https://www.petrampvc.ca/