Why Is My Boiler Drain Valve Leaking?
A prevalent yet neglected issue is your boiler drain valve leaking. And a leaky fitting can be the most probable reason for this.
To fix it, you appoint a plumber. But then again, a plumber is not always available at your doorsteps. In that case, the homeowner has to come forward and DIY.
Now, does that sound complicated? What are the possible reasons for your boiler drain valve leaking? How do you stop a leaking drain valve? If you are looking for easy and instant solutions, consider reading this entire article. As we are going to discuss the reasons and how to fix them easily.
Know Why Boiler Drain Valve Leaking
Problems | Solutions |
If your valve is pretty old, it might leak from the welds. | Boiler drain valve replacement would bring a solution to this problem. |
If your drain valve remains open and forget to close it, the boiler relief valve leaking. | Make sure to close it all the way. |
Leaky fittings. | Whether it leaks where the thing is soldered, closed, or the valve that is not closed has to be determined |
There could be water dripping from the temperature-pressure relief valve. | Check if the pressure is too high. |
Replacement is essential. | Contact a plumber or follow the above steps to do it yourself. |
We are Going to Elaborate the Solutions for you in this Part
- If your valve is pretty old, replacement would be the only option.
- If the drain valve remains open, consider closing it and checking again.
- Check whether the fittings are loose or leaky.
But how can you tell where it is leaking around the fitting? Close the valve all the way, dry everything off and check the leakage area. Whether it is the valve itself or the area somewhere around the valve.
- You can fix these leaky fittings by adding solder that needs no welding around the valve. Now if the valve is leaking itself or no more usable, you gotta replace it.
- You might be wondering if the above process is expensive. Well, no!
- Just drain it in a planned fashion from the drain valve. Or else it might get worse and you end up having an unexpected puddle on the floor.
Water could be dripping from the temperature-pressure relief valve. In that case, you need to check the pressure.
- If the pressure is high enough to force it to leak from other valves, that would flood and cause a dangerous situation.
- So you must check that the valve is shut all the way while there are no red warning lights flashing on the control panel.
- If you did not replace the valve for a longer period, rust inside and around the drain valve might develop.
- In some cases, the sediment gets so bad that you cannot drain it through the drain valve. Hence, replacing the drain valve periodically can save you from all these troubles.
How To Fix Your Boiler Drain Valve Leaking?
The easiest way to notice the boiler relief valve leaking water is that the nipples would be coming off of the copper valve.
Follow these steps and see how to fix the boiler drain valve dripping.
- While taking the valve off, make sure not to twist it. Instead, just hold it below. If you twist it, you can end up twisting the pipe off, thereby leading to a mess.
- If there’s no flat spot, use channel locks to make a grip. The channel lock has teeth cut in it. That will cause it to grip in one particular direction and slip in the other direction.
- Grab the channel lock and pull it in a way for the stair teeth to grip. So pull it upward and use a wrench for turning the fitting in the other way.
- Now holding the wrench, twist it, and reverse until the fitting comes out.
- Then you will notice the boiler relief valve keeps leaking. Turn the water off.
- Time to replace the new fitting. Put in just a simple half-inch boiler drain. You will get these at a hardware store.
- Wrap some Teflon tape. Teflon tape wraps the loose threads by filling up the space between them to tight grip.
Also Read: [Solved] Ball Valve Leaking: A Step-By-Step Guide With Details!
- When you turn it clockwise to tighten it into the fitting, you want the Teflon tape to slide with it, instead of rolling up in a ball. So with your fitting pointed upward, you are going to start it on the bottom and run it around.
- Roll it around at least three times. You will notice the Teflon tape pulled up along and not get bunched up. In this regard, make sure to put it in such a way that when you screw it in, it drags instead of dragging it. We recommend using a little bit of the pipe thread sealant to seal.
- Now go back to your fitting and finish the threading by hand. There will be water dumping out.
- Install your new fitting right away. Use your hand in this step. That way, you don’t have to cross-thread anything.
- Now tighten it in the same procedure as we have explained earlier. Tighten them until they are pretty snug.
- Turn the water back on. If water is still leaking, try tightening them again. If it still doesn’t fix, take them back out and reapply the Teflon tape and thread sealant.
This Video Will Help You Too!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are some frequently asked questions that may solve your queries regarding this topic. So we are going to cover these in case if you are curious.
What is a boiler drain valve used for?
We use a boiler drain valve to drain water in a plumbing or heating system.
Why is my boiler drain valve leaking?
It could either be due to the leaky fittings, or the valve might remain open. Often the valve gets too old, so it starts leaking.
How do I stop my boiler relief valve from leaking?
Use a channel lock and twist the old valve carefully. We have stated the instructions above. Follow them, and you will be able to stop your boiler relief valve from leaking.
Conclusion
After following the above instructions, we believe you can fix when boiler drain valve leaking. These steps are easy, so you can definitely try them!
However, if you follow the steps above yet end up with a leaking valve, contact a plumber immediately. Seek his help to fix the drain valve for good.
You Can Also Read:
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