It is the time of the year when customers are turning their garden taps on and discovering burst pipes.

The above is what I found yesterday morning. The customer had just turned off the shutoff valve inside the house in the fall, did not drain the line, left the hose connected outside, left the valve in the off position outside. There is about an inch of 1/2in copper pipe between the wall and the valve. The pipe did not burst presumably because there was enough heat conducted from the inside of the house.

As you can see, the valve burst above the ball. Could it be because rain water or melting ice seeped in between the valve stem and its housing? There is enough of a gap for water to seep in. There is no packing nut. Not sure if there is any packing there. I will split the valve open and see. I will have to stop using these valves if that is what happened.



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generally:

OFF = closed

ON = open

the pic you posted indicates the valve is open

if, as you say, the customer left the hose attached it is possible that the line became 'air bound' and did not drain

the split valve would be expected and the customer was very very lucky

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"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638



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Yes, I turned the stem while examining the split after I took the valve off. And, yes, the line was filled with water all through the winter. What I was wondering was, the water that froze, did that water leak in from the outside past the stem or was it water under pressure inside the valve that leaked upwards past the ball?

The hose being connected is irrelevant. The valve broke because they did not drain the line. He was lucky because the water in the valve froze and broke the valve relieving the pressure otherwise the copper tubing would split, regardless of any "heat from the building". If I were you, they are the only valves I would use if they will break and prevent more serious damage when things are not done properly to drain them.

It did NOT "leak upwards past the ball". Every time the ball is rotated, the ball cavity fills with water. However, when the valve is either fully open or fully closed, that water is "trapped' inside the body. That is why you can "explode" the seals if the valve is not partially opened, to relieve the pressure, when you solder them.

Thanks, hj, I will continue to use these valves.



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The thing to remember is that when the ball rotates and then seals, the water that went into the "cavity" is trapped so ANY expansion, whether from freezing or overheating will create tremendous pressure.