Hi fellas
I was opening dewinterizing an older home (built 1954, galvanized pipe) that had gone unoccupied for several months, when i couldn't get water to show in the toilet tank. I figured maybe some rust sediment just clogged the flush valve, and came back to it a little later hoping some water would have made it to the tank before I decided to disconnect the feed and make a small mess in the bathroom, but still no water. Downstairs There was a ceiling tile missing already, so I and removed a few more to investigate further, and found a strange installation attached to the cold pipe just below the toilet that I cannot identify. There was an inline brass valve type thing with some sort of adjustable settings (gauged teeth and a small wing type lever) all brass construction. Curiousity got the best of me and I took down some more ceiling tile, to reveal that this odd little valve had a 1/4 - 3/8" flexible copper tubing running out its backside and connected to the cold pipe for the adjacent sink, using a saddle valve through the galv pipe. The tubing has a small leak at its sag, probably from freezing. Never seen this setup before. I hope you guys can help.

that's an easy one. it is a tempering valve for the toilet.
it blends hot water into the cold toilet supply to keep the tank from sweating.
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Interesting! My new house is on a well like this one, and the water supply can become really cold, but no tempering valves are installed on the toilets? Are these still in use today?

Also, it seems to me a pretty elaborate installation to avoid condensation. Was this a "high-end" or luxury item back in the day?

Thanks for the quick reply.

I would say it was a luxury item. I have installed several of them over the years. Usually if a tank is sweating enough to cause water in the floor ,the flapper is leaking , the humidity in the home is very high, or the toilet is getting flushed often.
You can buy a toilet tank that comes insulated from the factory, or you can buy an insulation kit to line the toilet tank.
I have fed all the toilets in a home from a tempering tank, which was just an electric water heater with the jacket and insulation removed, allowing the water to reach room temperature before going to the toilets.

I used to install a few of them here and there back in the day but with most homes being air conditioned now, toilet tank condensation is not the problem it used to be. Also, toilets require less water per flush (1.6 vs. 3.5) now and that translates to less condensation.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge and experience fellas.



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