What Is a Sprinkler Stop-And-Waste Valve?
Sprinkler Stop-And-Waste Valves
Sprinklers are a common household necessity that can help grass grow and plants thrive. As a lawn care essential, irrigation sprinklers can use lots of water and there is the possibility that water can be wasted as a result.
Stop-and-waste valves are commonly found in many homes and are helpful for draining water out of hoses while preventing other issues. These valves are rather simple but can prevent future pipe problems from occurring.
What Are Sprinkler Stop-And-Waste Valves?
Homes that have sprinkler systems or hoses, often have stop-and-waste valves. These are valves that prevent the flow of water from going past the valve. One of the components that make up a stop-and-waste valve is a key or knob that shuts the valve and cuts the main water supply off. Additionally, there are usually two openings one leading to the water supply and the other leading to the drainage side. The “waste” in stop-and-waste represents that one of the main functions of the valve is letting water out of the hose or sprinkler system to drain.
This is important to do especially before the cold winter months hit and the cold temperatures begin freezing pipes. When water is drained out of the sprinkler system, this prevents water from freezing while still inside the hose or sprinkler. When water freezes, it becomes bigger and the stop-and-waste valve prevents the pipes from bursting due to water expansion.
Where Is the Stop-And-Waste Valve Located?
Typically, the stop and waste valve is located below the point where the ground freezes. It depends if your house is located in a warmer climate or a colder one on where the stop-and-waste valve could exactly be. It is always buried beneath the ground to ensure that it can stay at a warm and generally constant temperature.
In some places that the valve several may even be several feet under the ground. Warmer climates won’t need to bury it quite as deep, only just below the surface sometimes.
How Much Does a Sprinkler Stop-And-Waste Cost?
As mentioned above, a sprinkler stop-and-waste system is located below the ground. This could cost extra money to replace but it’s much more cost-effective to replace this than to deal with a plumbing emergency, like an entire section of burst pipes.
When a stop-and-waste valve doesn’t work correctly, this could be a major pipeline problem later on. It’s important that when a homeowner realizes a stop-and-waste valve has issues draining or completely cutting off the water supply, then call a local plumbing technician.
They can come and take a look at it to see if it needs to be replaced or fixed, which will end up costing less in the end for homeowners rather than dealing with a burst pipe or even worse, flooding in the home.
Trust a Local Plumbing Technician!
Ira Hansen and Sons Plumbing located in Reno, NV has highly trained plumbing experts that can alleviate plumbing issues like commercial plumbing and sewer line repairs. Since 1986, they have been family owned and operated, and they focus on personalized plumbings solutions for every home.
With the high heat of spring and summer only weeks away, make sure that your sprinkler system is up to the task. Inspect your lawn for puddles or pools of bubbling water. Sunken patches also indicate a leak.
Given that your hoses are made of rubber or plastic, they are prone to damage. Even a slight tear will have you wasting water.
Get all the leaves and debris out of your gutters. If they are full of junk, the water can’t drain to the downspouts, which means that it will either stay on your roof, or drain close to your foundation.
If you’ve got a leaky outdoor faucet, here is how you tell. Turn the faucet on to full and place the palm of your hand over the spigot. The water should push your hand back.