Main valve not working. Water won't turn on! - DIY Chatroom

skellies · 10-31-2006, 01:19 AM

Hi,

My house is a 1920 two-story in Upstate, NY. Tonight, I went to the basement and I turned off the main water valve to bleed my pipes. I had a slight water hammer problem. When I went to turn off the water, I knew something was wrong.

My old valve has a circular knob on it like a garden hose spicket. I had to turn it 20 times or so to get the water to shut. The problem now is that the valve seems to be spinning and spinning but the water dosen't seem to flow almost as it it's stuck in the closed position.

Is my valve broken? I now have no water flowing in the house. From what I see it looks like a trip to HD, a new valve and my big wrenches will do the trick. But how do fix this problem.

Or do I need to call a plumber? I've included a pic to show you my antique main water valve which is on the far right of the picture. Please Help!

Thank you.

Ivan.

Ron The Plumber · 10-31-2006, 04:17 AM

You probably need to replace this valve, it looks like there is a mix of copper and galv pipe, shutting the water off at meter will be 1st step, open outside hose to let pressure off line, then you will need to cut the copper to the left of picture with tubing cutters, then unscrew the old shut off from the pipe, then there are a few ways to reconnect the pipe back together after you ger new valve installed, there is re-solder it back together, pex it back together, I would use pex, but soldering might be best for you if you know how to sweat copper, if this all sounds difficult, then call a plumber in for help.