? Change stopcock to quarter turn valve

[pandaman]

The mains stopcock in the photo which is under a sink cupboard is very hard to turn off, I could not turn water fully off to examine a tap valve in the kitchen, it was in the house new nearby 27 yrs ago. Advancing in yrs I have not got the grip I used to have and my wife cannot turn it at all due to nerve damage in right arm. Could a plumber fit a quarter turn valve, the ones with the red handle? Also if they can are they available with the different size openings? How hard are they to fit on a plastic inlet pipe? Also if able to fit can the valve be half open as th

e current one supplies enough pressure on a quarter turn of the tap handle?

 

[denso13]

Simple enough job on all counts as long as the water can be turned off outside.

 

[CBW]

It doesn’t look like it would be that hard, providing the boundary stopcock is accessible and easy enough to turn off, or the use of a freeze kit (not recommended in warmer months ). If you’re both struggling, what about a remotely operated one, such as this? If your pressure is too great, you might want a pressure reducing valve, as stopcocks/lever valves don’t reduce pressure, only flow.

 

[pandaman]

Thanks for reply. Street shut off should be no problem. I did look at the surestop valve with remote but not sure it would be wise to replace existing stopcock with one, reading reviews of them suggests they may leak after a year or 2 or 3. I don't think there is enough pipe run above stopcock as just above shelf it turns 90 degrees with other connections beyond it. If drain tap removed it may fit but is that wise, with water turned off and valve disconnected there must be alot of water in pipes to run off. Reducing valve souns a good idea.

 

[Tigercubrider]

one thing about those taps/valves is that ideally they shouldn't be left "fully on"
if seizes, having a bit of movement available to go more open often helps it to close.
If your wife has nerve damage then a small piece of wood could be cut with a slot in it so it fits over the T shape and acts as a lever.
Maybe such a thing exists in plastic already?

 

[pandaman]

Thanks for info will investigate what you sggested.

 

[CBW]

The surestop isn’t meant to replace the stopcock, but an addition to make certain peoples lives easier. We have some fitted, and haven’t heard of them leaking. The only one I know that leaked is because somebody fitted incorrectly which will happen with any fitting.

 

[pandaman]

Would try the surestop but as mentioned I can't see where it would fit into pipework.

 

[CBW]

Would try the surestop but as mentioned I can't see where it would fit into pipework.

If it were me fitting one, the easiest way would be to lower the existing stopcock, and fit it just above that.

 

[Keithmac]

Out stopcock was "tempramental" and they'd fitted it at floor level..

I put a 1/4 turn full bore valve in further up the pipe as said above.

You've still got a WRAS compliant stop cock fitted still (even though you don't use it).

 

[ETAF]

Not sure how much truth is here from the plumber/gasfitter
I had to have some work done on a stop cock and the Plumber was not keen on turning the street off - old house 1904 , and this was around 2002 ish , the road tap had not been touched according to my partner she had lived there for 30years . The plumber said if he broke it , then we would be changed to fix, if the utility company did it and it broke then its there issue
Anyway we had to get the water company in to turn off and sure enough they broke it , and then had to replace - so that was extended delay...

Also at that time water meters did not seem a big deal, as they just changed the tap and then made good, i suspect these days they would fit a water meter if not already on one - not sure the impact of that to you

But as i say, the plumber may not be telling the full story , as i took him at his word - part of replacing a boiler , and we had some issues....

I would personally - just have another tap fitted above the main stopcock with the lever - full bore version