Four Most Common Purge Valve Problems

Four Most Common Purge Valve Problems

Purge valves are mostly small devices that are used to control or regulate the flow of materials in a system, engine, pipes or tubing. The purge valve gradually opens and closes to regulate the amount of liquid or gas that is allowed to flow in a pipe or tubing. This makes the purge valve a very important device or component of any tubing or pipe system.

However, the purge valve is just like any other device; it can get faulty or damaged at any time. Surprisingly, most users do not pay attention to the condition of their purge valve, so they might not be aware that it’s faulty until something goes wrong. For this reason, it is important to develop and maintain an effective and consistent maintenance routine to prevent and detect problems in time.

There are several types and models of purge materials out there, and each is manufactured using different types of materials. The choice of material hugely depends on the application of the purge valve – so does the different faults it could develop.

Here are the four most common problems of purge valves:

Leaks

Leaking is a common problem that plagues all types of purge valves, regardless of the materials they are made with or their application. Generally, leaks are mostly caused by rust, corrosion and mineral build-up. However, leaks can also be caused when the temperature or pressure of the material flowing through the valve is over or close to the rated limit for the valve.

Leaks can be small and mild or extensive. Mostly, mild leaks donot cause much damage. Extensive leaks on the other hand can be very serious and you might need to replace some broken or worn parts of the valve or the entire valve.

Seizing Parts

The purge valve is a device that has some moving parts. Often, these parts may seize and might not move as they should. This is mostly caused by lack of lubrication. Seizing parts may lead to a problem or two, however, these are common problem and they are mostly not very serious.

Cracks

Another common problem of the purge valve is cracking. As simple as it might sound, cracked purge valves can be a really big source of headaches for users, especially if they do not know why their valves are cracking. There are a host of reasons why your purge valves might get cracked and knowing these reasons and preventing them can make your valve last longer and save you the cost of changing them.

Usually, purge valve cracks are caused by over-wrenching, over-pressure, extreme temperature changes and using pipes or fittings made of different materials.

The hammer effect

The hammer effect or water hammer can pose some serious threat to purge valves or gauges used in water, oil or gas application. The hammer effect is caused when the liquid pressure is abruptly turned from an on position to an off position. The flowing train of water comes to a sudden halt, creating a shockwave that can damage the purge valve.

Conclusion

Regardless of the type or application of your purge valve, you should always bear in mind that all devices get faulty, and your purge valve is not an exception. So you should have a maintenance routine in place to help you prevent and detect faults in the purge valve. Keeping a good maintenance routine can significantly increase the life of your purge valve.