Gate or ball valve for central heating pump

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I need to replace the the feed side isolating valve of the pump. The ball valve is cheaper. Is there a disadvantage to it? It is known that ball vales are not good for throttling. But, throttling will not be needed for this application.
 
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1. The ball valves with a screwdriver slot for operation are notorious for leaking.
2. Gate valves are notorious for seizing in the open or closed position, and also rarely seal completely when closed.
3. The best option in my opinion is a decent make (e.g. Pegler) ball valve with a square spindle end. Expect to pay between £15 and £20.
4. If the budget won't run to that, get a gate valve and operate it once or twice a year.
 
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Re. post #3.
1. Better build and materials quality.
2. The square on the spindle allows a spanner to be used to open / close, rather than a screwdriver slot which tends to get chewed up.
3. If you are seeking advice, perhaps better not to use schoolmaster phrases like "care to explain".
 
OK, found the reason why the old valve wasn't working. There was carbon build up in the valve preventing it to close. This could be corrected at the moment of using the valve by opening, and closing it with increasing tightness repeatedly. This could be helped along by running the pump between each open and close cycle to move the dislodged debris.
 
Re. post #3.
1. Better build and materials quality.
2. The square on the spindle allows a spanner to be used to open / close, rather than a screwdriver slot which tends to get chewed up.
3. If you are seeking advice, perhaps better not to use schoolmaster phrases like "care to explain".
OK, schoolmaster, thanks for the info. It's starting to make sense to me now.

On balance, I will reuse the old valve. Ball valves use more rubber and plastic. Those will fail over time as well. My attempt to disassemble the gate valve for cleaning also failed because the old brass is brittle and unable to deal with the spanner.
 
?carbon?

Do you mean black deposits? Iron oxide.

Have you got a magnetic filter yet?
 
?carbon?

Do you mean black deposits? Iron oxide.

Have you got a magnetic filter yet?
Yes, black carbon. I have just put everything back. I will use a magnet on them next time. I am not convinced they are magnetic. But, this is not to say I am right. They resemble the same black stuff in car combustion related chambers. If they are proven to be magnetic then I will consider a filter. It's quite apparent the central heating cleaners are a load of bull oxes. These have no effect on the black stuff to soften or dislodge them.
 
They are black iron oxide deposits, from the steel radiators. No question.
 
I had some left over black stuff in a bucket and a magnet is effective. So, I do need a filter.
 

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