Just installed one between meter and service entrance..what a huge (nice) difference! City water over 80psi and over 100 at night! No more problems now at a relaxing 45. Awesome video!
I have lived in a house with low water pressure for 20 years. I just figured I was stuck with it. Finally occurred to me to look up what causes low pressure on the internet and I learned about the water pressure regulator and discovered your video. Thanks so much! As the others said, this is a perfect video and very well demonstrated. So much so, I think that maybe even this 60 year old lady might be able to fix it herself!
Customers house I remodeled 3 bathrooms in. Their pressure always seemed high to me and I always had a ad time with new shutoff valves leaking. Turns out their PRV has failed. Their house had street pressure coming into it. 120 psi! Once we started digging, found multiple solder joints failing throughout the house. Now they have a mess on their hands because it is unknown how many kore were leaking slowly and potentially filled wall cavities with mold. Be careful with water pressure.
Same in my former townhouse, although the line pressure was 100 psi and the piping held. I started looking into that after replacing water heater that lasted only 8 years. Cheap model, but still. Pretty sure high pressure is not good for the tank longevity. There was no expansion tank either, so I installed an expansion tank and a Honeywell/Braukmann PRV. By the way, those townhouses were built like crap and one day, a neighbor had his entire 3"" sewer plumbing suspended in the crawl space fall off from the floor joists and break into pieces. They didn't notice till there was an actual pile of shit down there. ServiceMaster was called for that one...
Fyi any PRV that has a thermal expansion bypass feature will not release water back into the city system unless the downstream of the prv pressure reaches 10 psi ABOVE the street pressure. So if the incoming pressure from the street is 100 and your prv is set to 60, the pressure downstream would have to reach 110 psi for the bypass feature to activate. It could reach this pressure downstream when the water is heated by the water heater. When pressure builds this high downstream of the prv you will end up with excess wear and tear on all plumbing components in the home. Most notably the spring on any t&p valve on the water heater and eventually the spring on the prv. Bottom line is if you have a prv installed and a heat source downstream of it you need to control thermal expansion.
Great video,I feel that I should mention that now a days water companies are installing back flow preventers because according to them (the water companies) back flow may contaminate the water supply so back flow prevention is necessary.Before you buy a Pressure Reducing Valve check with the water company that services your area and ask if they use back flow preventers which they probably do if they have upgraded their water service lines.I don't think that installing an expansion tank upside down is so critical because the water in the expansion tank isn't likely to stagnate as in the case of an expansion tank for a water heater where the expansion tank's diaphram pushes the water out of the expansion tank when ever a hot water faucet is opened.If in doubt what I would do is to install a check valve where water will exit the water line but will not allow the water to back flow (return).Great video,God bless you and yours.P.S.,I looked to see how much the PRV rebuild kits are and I was shocked to see that the PRV rebuild kits are almost as expensive as buying the whole PRV new.
Expansion tanks can fail, filling the water lines with debris from the tank’s internal rubber-like bladder. I had this happen. Turns out that there is a reason the expansion tank warranty is only something like 5 years; chemicals used to treat public water and some mineral content in water both act to degrade the bladder within an expansion tank. If your faucet aerators are repeatedly getting clogged, check that expansion tank. Testing the expansion tank is a painful exercise unless you plan in advance for being able to do testing without feeling that pain. You want to be able to put an air pressure gauge on the expansion tank when there is no water pressure on the tank, and at the same time you want to be able to see what the water pressure is. This means you in advance either had to plan to drain the expansion tank and easily get a reading on water pressure; or you have a bit more pain in draining the whole cold water line above the expansion tank while water is shut off. And in that case where do you get that water pressure reading at? Another test is to see if the expansion tank has become waterlogged. Some do this by tapping their knuckles on the tank; I have my tank on a loop of PEX, supported by straps, so I can wiggle and shake the tank to check this. Another thing is setting the air pressure on the tank. If your expansion tank’s preset air pressure is less than the water pressure out of the PRV, then the tank will always have water in it. So the air pressure has to be set right at or just above the water pressure, so that the tank has little to no water in it under normal conditions, only taking water in when the water heater has caused expansion and releasing the water that was taken in at the first use of water at a fixture. And since these expansion tanks are located high up, a battery powered air pump is a good tool to have in case you have to increase the tank’s air pressure. And remember that the tank’s air pressure reading is only valid with the tank empty of water and no water pressure being supplied. And if the expansion tank air pressure is much higher than the water pressure, then the function of the expansion tank (as far as taking in expanded water after a heating cycle) is defeated. If the expansion tank air pressure is set too high, the water heater relief valve can “pop” and you will have water dripping from the relief valve. The last thing is setting the water pressure coming out of the PRV. In my area, code requires water pressure to fixtures to be less than 80 PSI; and if you go below something like 40 PSI you will probably complain about low water pressure. If you set water pressure on the low side of that range, you can actually save some water when showering (for example), since the amount of water that flows through the fixture over some specific time will be less than the amount of water that would flow over that same time at a higher pressure. The trade off comes in the amount of time needed to fill things like a bath tub or the laundry washing machine. So pick a reasonable pressure somewhere in the middle. I believe I set mine somewhere between 55 PSI and 60 PSI. These are important details that most people do not come to realize until they are in some predicament. And most do not realize how closely the expansion tank and the PRV should have their respective pressures set. I think I have mentioned here most of the things that tend to be overlooked. And I am not a plumber ;)
Clean, Efficient, Great Tips, .. if only all places had the competence and understanding of this video. I've lived many placed and the property has horrible nightmare pipe setups and the management companies all are clueless of it all. scary.
I use to not like these videos but I love them as I get more business from homeowners trying to play plumber. There’s so many variables that 10 videos covering this issue couldn’t cover everything. There’s bonding issues, grounding issue and volume issues which you failed to cover.
Instead of paying for someone else's vacations, big fancy trucks and expensive colleges for their kids, I just love saving hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars per repair, and then investing the savings into more and more professional quality tools, which enables me to take on bigger and bigger jobs myself. All of which have passed code inspection on the first pass, because I do my research and I know how to read the IRC and muni codes. And in 40 years, I've never had to place a panic call for a professional to bail me out. Between me playing plumber, electrician, carpenter, gardener and ASE auto mechanic, I've managed to equip a pretty nice shop and auto maintenance bay, complete with 80 gallon air compressor, BendPak two post hydraulic lift, and about $35k in hand and power tools. All paid for out of the money I have saved on labor, inflated material and parts costs, and calling fees over the course of almost four decades of DIY work. Thank you Internet, thank you RUclips, and of course, thank you to folks like Julio!
I know this video is 6 months old, watching this is super interesting, we do things much different in South Africa, like prvs are mandatory here, max 87psi, we work in kPa and not psi, our prvs come with a relief valve that screws directly into the prv, with built in shut offs, for roughly 80 usd.. I'd love to have a chat when I catch the next live chat
There’s a difference between pressure and flow. If your pressure valve is bad, you can have super high dangerous pressure, but a weak flow. When you have a functional valve, your flow at the faucets and hose bibs will most definitely improve because pressure is distributed evenly throughout your system. Sounds odd, but it’s true.
Get a pressure reading from your street side of your plumbing. Sometimes your local fire dept could also be a good source for that information. If your street psi is already low, you’ll need a booster. In this scenario you’ll need a licensed plumber.
The city pressure is probably 100 psi or more. You're prv is probably set to about 30. So you can twist the dial either way you can make it higher Good design is to run the water for the hosebibs without being tied to the prv so you get high pressure hoses
The one and only time I've soldered copper was installing a prv on 1". Couldn't use shark bites since it was roll copper pipe coming out of the slab. Pressure was spiking at 100 psi on urinal and toilet shutoff.
The thing I want to know is where do you get the PRVs with unions on both sides. The supply houses we use have I think watts with only one union and it always causes more digging than should be necessary. What funny to me as someone in Texas is saying that “you’ll probably be putting it in the wall”. We put ours a foot from the meter in the front yard.
if you loosen the unions on the prv to make repairs around it, would you need to replace the rubber gaskets? If so where is the best place to get just the two rubber gaskets. I have a wilkins 1 inch prv
Great video! Question, if I don't install the thermal expansion tank, but I regularly use the TPV to release excess pressure from my hot water heater, will that suffice? Thanks.
I want to know who thumbed this video down? What are your reasons? This is great content, edited down to around 10 minutes, and explained perfectly! Great video thanks!
Great video. Thanks for sharing. Shouldn't we use dielectric unions for water heater, and expansion tank connections? Thanks in advance for sharing your experience and knowledge.
You can install a second shut off ball valve just after the PRV so that you don’t have to drain water if you ever have to service the PRV - which you need to do to clean the screen / filter.
Can you recommend pressure test gauges that would be good to use for permanently install before and after the PRV? And a recommended Drain-cock? I guess, are there some main go-to brands to use for plumbing parts, etc. I am not sure if I should trust all the products at the big box stores. Thanks.
I have a PRV just before my water heater. But the water pressure to the rest of the house is too high. Should the plumber have installed it at the main water line coming into the house, and not way down the line at my water heater? My water heater doesn't have a thermal expansion tank either. Also, can I install a EB25 at the main line entrance and leave the PRV at the water heater location?
Yeah well if he skipped a few branches, those branches won't be regulated. Some PRVs have a check valve in them, some don't, if yours has a check valve, it won't allow pressure from your system back into the city, which means you need a tank. As for having 2 PRVs, I don't see any issues there.
Quick correction at 3:15. The "PRV" shown in the video is a regulator. A regulator is not the same thing as a PRV. A PRV is the valve installed in your water heater. The R stands for Relief, not Reducing. A Pressure *Relief* Valve has a slim metal handle which allows for the *relief* of pressure. A Pressure *Reducing* Valve (which is not called a PRV, but a regulator) has no such pressure relieving valve but instead has a diaphragm inside which reduces, or *regulates* , the water pressure to a lower pressure. Do NOT go into a plumbing store asking for a PRV when you need a regulator.
I always heard of those as TPR valves (Temperature Pressure Relief). Good to know that these may be called PRVs to avoid confusion in the future. I would have just assumed PRV meant Pressure Regulating Valve
Thanks for video! So i had a PSI of 120 in the house and had plumber install a PRV, its now set to 75 PSI. He didn't install a expansion tank, i currently have a tankless gas water heater. Is this needed? What issues can happen without a expansion tank?
Yeah that's a combi boiler, so the expansion tank is most likely on the heating side, you shouldn't need an expansion tank of the potable side as it only heats when there's a demand so the system isn't considered "closed" ;)
Awesome video! can you do a follow up video on how to differentiate between Water Pressure Relief Valves that require an expansion tank and those that don't - not quite clear on how to spot the difference.
You showed two separate models of the PRV constructions when discussing about possible problems/issues of the PRVs - one in talking about the filter and gaskets while showing an assembly of the Zurn Wilkins model which is completely different where the filter and gasket comes together as an assembly. My latter failed to relieve and control any pressure. So does that mean I can just replace the whole assembly of the Zurn Wilkens model?
My water pressure is high right now 100 psi and I am putting in a PRV to set at about 60 psi for the indoor plumbing fixtures. Would this effect how a gasoline pressure washer is used around my house, should I pipe my garden hose spickets before the PRV so they stay at the city water pressure ?
Hello, I loved your video. Question here, if I have tankless water heater do I still need expansion tank or just water hammer arrestor near the PRV? Thanks
You need to ask your heater's manufacture as they are all different, chance are you'll need an expansion tank, no need for water hammer arrestors if your pipes aren't knocking.
@@kellykai4068 Owners manual should give you an expansion tank size based on your city pressure and water heater model, every installation is different.
Morning your videos are awesome, I have howling in my pipes I hear the noise primarily in my master bath but also hear the howling when the water is turned on in the kitchen or the other bathroom. Can you help me? 5:40AM Utah
Just installed a Moen Flo and found an interesting situation. When I shut off most faucets I get a rise in pressure from around 55 to 60-65 PSI. It appears my water hammer arrestors are somehow trapping the spike and the one way valve at the meter is keeping it. I noticed that one way valve must have a slow leak as I see the pressure eventually falls back to 55 PSI. I run a tankless water heater and will be adding a small expansion tank to that setup to hopefully reduce this change in pressure a little bit. I've not really noticed much increase caused by running the hot water as most of the expansion of the pipes happens pretty quickly. I have PEX, Copper and CPVC in the home, yep it's a mess.
@@Got2Learn Added a little ST-1 expansion bulb to the tankless. Water hammer is now only boosting the pressure to 57-58 PSI from 55 vs the 60-65+ that it was. Just crazy how the hammer arrestors can act like a hammer pump boosting the pressure. If I didn't have a backflow preventer on the service line it wouldn't matter none.
I see companies selling thermal expansion valves that are additional. Also most zurn bypass. Shark bite thermal expansion relief can substitute tank but will just leak the water out after 125psi
Do you need a hot water heater to set this up. I’m in Puerto Rico have just a gas hot water heater. I have no electricity. I installed a pressure reader valve and a water pressure regulator. I still experience my filter canister cracking and they are expensive here. I’ve lost 2 so bought a taller one but would like to see no more leaks. I’ve been dealing with this 2 years. I got the 25-75 psi but it’s set at 50 psi I get low water in sink but it ok at washer and shower.
Hi, if the water pressure is higher than normal, is the water/utility provider supposed to provide the PRV or is it the homeowner responsibility? Thank you.
I just had a new water heater installed replacing an old leaker. I thought everything was great, but the PRV leaks constantly into a P-trap drain and it's driving me crazy. The only time it doesn't leak is when another fixture in the condo is in use. I do have a PRV in the unit. What do you think is the problem? Thanks for any insight!
this also counts as a back flow prevent er, i have a 2.5 gallon water heater and one of these installed, if i put in the water heater do i need an expansion tank or is the piping enough with it being only 2.5 gallons? i know this sounds weird but i have a line of my sprinkler system going to a tree house that has 2 sinks and would like to put this in for the sinks but am concerned about that making their be too much pressure.
Hi great video. Would I need a eb25 valve or a regular one way prv if I have a tankless on demand water heater? Not sure if this relates. New to this. Thank you.
Doesn't the expansion tank give difficulty when measuring pressure later? Essentially you are then measuring the psi in the tank and not getting an accurate water pressure reading.
Hello, can u make video on a (hot water) return line? With a pump, without a pump, with a backflow preventer, without a backflow preventer, if you need a expansion tank, thank you so much!
I see the common setup is to place the PRV after main shutoff valve. What if I installed the PRV before the main shutoff valve to the house? Here is the setup: shutoff valve from sidewalk --> PRV --> shutoff valve to the house. I would think things will still work.
Yes it would work however if you needed to do maintenance work on it you would need to close the sidewalk valve, here in Montreal only the city can close that valve so it all depends on if you have access or not...
My water pressure usually is good but in May 2021 it completely stopped after a few weeks of hardly any pressure. Turn sink on for 30 seconds and it'd stop completely. We replaced the regulator valve and viola. It was fixed! Now exactly 1 year later it is doing the exact same thing. Could it be possible it is the expansion tanks fault? I plan on taking the regulator off and checking the seals and everything, not even sure if that would even be the reason why.
Just had a new HW installed. They added an expansion tank per code changes. Tank set at 70 PSI. They noted on expansion tank as supply as 70, however I started getting hammering. So checked the water pressure and the reading is about 95PSi. Attempting to adjust to reduce to meet the 70 PSI at tank, however when I got to 70PSi on supply side, still hammering. Reduced to 40 PSI, hammering stopped. Move pressure to preset settings 50PSi, no hammering, but the tank is still at 70PSi, Should I reduce the tank to match PRV setting or leave as is?
Hi.Remember,these PRVs fail with time,so they must be always accessible,to repair,replace,or clean.how do u know u have high or low pressure? have always a gauge on hand.take measures in the night,as neighborhood,is not in high use demand of water.If you live near commercial,industrial place,u could have high pressure,as this is necessary,for fire protection.If using 2 PRVs, u can install in parallel,or series,depending of ur particular,situation.
I have a slab foundation currently dealing with slab leak and realizing how poorly designed and installed my system was when this house was built 14 years ago.... Main shut-off is just outside the foundation. This main branches with a "T" inside the foundation and so I need to put a pressure reducing valve between the main shut-off and foundation. The shut-off is also down in the ground about 18" in a box. Can these reducing valves be installed down in the ground? This is north texas where it does freeze but not down in the ground (so that shut-off has yet to freeze but knock on wood). My pressure last time I checked was 90 PSI so high. Working to bypass that slab leak I have been opening up the manifolds in the walls (I think a monkey did the soldering there is solder and green from flux everywhere!!)...I was able to bypass the slab leak for now. But no hot water now to half the house. So while I'm working on all this I'm looking for a way to have pressure reduction to affect both cold branches. thanks for your videos. Massive help!
If you can install it inside it's always preferable, but if it doesn't freeze outside, it can be installed there. Thank you so much for commenting and I hope your project turns out well, have a great day Vincent!
Although I'm not a plumber, the Zurn Wilkins NR3XL has the internal bypass check valve feature and therefore, the addition of the expansion tank in this video was unnecessary.
@@ImNotADeeJay that's considerably high, just make sure you get a good one and you'll be good for a while, and don't forget to clean out the strainer regularly if it has one 🤘
My water pressure seems high but can't find a regulator as place was built in 1946. I want to put in a regulator where the old school water meter is in utility room which is not used any more since there is one out front by the road.
I couldn’t find anything on the internet about the EB25 not requiring an expansion tank, can anyone verify this correct? The companies website showed a diagram of the installation and it showed an expansion tank. Thanks
@@Got2Learn It's the first time. When I try to loosen the nut, the entire chamber moves as well. I tried holding the chamber with some pliers but the nut does not move.
Hello I don't like pressure reducer made of plastic they last for 1-2 years and they become useless. Invest in brass made reducer, you can take off the cap and change the gasket more economic and last longer. Best regards
The rating on my PRV is 15-75 psi. Does that mean that the max pressure I can get is 75 psi? If so, that is great for me. I will not have to worry about configuring the unit for too much pressure.
What if you have an expansion tank at the boiler??? We have boiler hot water and heat so I wouldn't think the expansion location would matter but maybe I am wrong???
Just installed one between meter and service entrance..what a huge (nice) difference! City water over 80psi and over 100 at night! No more problems now at a relaxing 45. Awesome video!
🙏🙏🙏👍
I have lived in a house with low water pressure for 20 years. I just figured I was stuck with it. Finally occurred to me to look up what causes low pressure on the internet and I learned about the water pressure regulator and discovered your video. Thanks so much! As the others said, this is a perfect video and very well demonstrated. So much so, I think that maybe even this 60 year old lady might be able to fix it herself!
Awesome Sherry, so glad I was able to help out, cheers!!!
Customers house I remodeled 3 bathrooms in.
Their pressure always seemed high to me and I always had a ad time with new shutoff valves leaking.
Turns out their PRV has failed. Their house had street pressure coming into it. 120 psi!
Once we started digging, found multiple solder joints failing throughout the house.
Now they have a mess on their hands because it is unknown how many kore were leaking slowly and potentially filled wall cavities with mold.
Be careful with water pressure.
Same in my former townhouse, although the line pressure was 100 psi and the piping held. I started looking into that after replacing water heater that lasted only 8 years. Cheap model, but still. Pretty sure high pressure is not good for the tank longevity. There was no expansion tank either, so I installed an expansion tank and a Honeywell/Braukmann PRV. By the way, those townhouses were built like crap and one day, a neighbor had his entire 3"" sewer plumbing suspended in the crawl space fall off from the floor joists and break into pieces. They didn't notice till there was an actual pile of shit down there. ServiceMaster was called for that one...
Excellent video and tutorial. You are obviously a skilled plumber. Well done.
ALL YOUR VIDEOS ARE highly educational... I began with your soldering videos and have seeing most, keep doing videos, you explain things very well!!!
very informative- love your instructional vids. I worked with a plumber for a while and your knowledge is spot on.
🤗🤗🤗👌👌👌
Fyi any PRV that has a thermal expansion bypass feature will not release water back into the city system unless the downstream of the prv pressure reaches 10 psi ABOVE the street pressure. So if the incoming pressure from the street is 100 and your prv is set to 60, the pressure downstream would have to reach 110 psi for the bypass feature to activate. It could reach this pressure downstream when the water is heated by the water heater. When pressure builds this high downstream of the prv you will end up with excess wear and tear on all plumbing components in the home. Most notably the spring on any t&p valve on the water heater and eventually the spring on the prv. Bottom line is if you have a prv installed and a heat source downstream of it you need to control thermal expansion.
Great video,I feel that I should mention that now a days water companies are installing back flow preventers because according to them (the water companies) back flow may contaminate the water supply so back flow prevention is necessary.Before you buy a Pressure Reducing Valve check with the water company that services your area and ask if they use back flow preventers which they probably do if they have upgraded their water service lines.I don't think that installing an expansion tank upside down is so critical because the water in the expansion tank isn't likely to stagnate as in the case of an expansion tank for a water heater where the expansion tank's diaphram pushes the water out of the expansion tank when ever a hot water faucet is opened.If in doubt what I would do is to install a check valve where water will exit the water line but will not allow the water to back flow (return).Great video,God bless you and yours.P.S.,I looked to see how much the PRV rebuild kits are and I was shocked to see that the PRV rebuild kits are almost as expensive as buying the whole PRV new.
Expansion tanks can fail, filling the water lines with debris from the tank’s internal rubber-like bladder. I had this happen. Turns out that there is a reason the expansion tank warranty is only something like 5 years; chemicals used to treat public water and some mineral content in water both act to degrade the bladder within an expansion tank. If your faucet aerators are repeatedly getting clogged, check that expansion tank.
Testing the expansion tank is a painful exercise unless you plan in advance for being able to do testing without feeling that pain. You want to be able to put an air pressure gauge on the expansion tank when there is no water pressure on the tank, and at the same time you want to be able to see what the water pressure is. This means you in advance either had to plan to drain the expansion tank and easily get a reading on water pressure; or you have a bit more pain in draining the whole cold water line above the expansion tank while water is shut off. And in that case where do you get that water pressure reading at?
Another test is to see if the expansion tank has become waterlogged. Some do this by tapping their knuckles on the tank; I have my tank on a loop of PEX, supported by straps, so I can wiggle and shake the tank to check this.
Another thing is setting the air pressure on the tank. If your expansion tank’s preset air pressure is less than the water pressure out of the PRV, then the tank will always have water in it. So the air pressure has to be set right at or just above the water pressure, so that the tank has little to no water in it under normal conditions, only taking water in when the water heater has caused expansion and releasing the water that was taken in at the first use of water at a fixture. And since these expansion tanks are located high up, a battery powered air pump is a good tool to have in case you have to increase the tank’s air pressure. And remember that the tank’s air pressure reading is only valid with the tank empty of water and no water pressure being supplied. And if the expansion tank air pressure is much higher than the water pressure, then the function of the expansion tank (as far as taking in expanded water after a heating cycle) is defeated. If the expansion tank air pressure is set too high, the water heater relief valve can “pop” and you will have water dripping from the relief valve.
The last thing is setting the water pressure coming out of the PRV. In my area, code requires water pressure to fixtures to be less than 80 PSI; and if you go below something like 40 PSI you will probably complain about low water pressure. If you set water pressure on the low side of that range, you can actually save some water when showering (for example), since the amount of water that flows through the fixture over some specific time will be less than the amount of water that would flow over that same time at a higher pressure. The trade off comes in the amount of time needed to fill things like a bath tub or the laundry washing machine. So pick a reasonable pressure somewhere in the middle. I believe I set mine somewhere between 55 PSI and 60 PSI.
These are important details that most people do not come to realize until they are in some predicament. And most do not realize how closely the expansion tank and the PRV should have their respective pressures set. I think I have mentioned here most of the things that tend to be overlooked. And I am not a plumber ;)
Excellent explanation. I learned a lot! Thanks.
🤘🤘🤘
@@Got2Learn - it took you 8 months to see that comment’s value …
Yea, fuck all that.
I could not figure out how the orings were supposed to go while installing this. Thank you so much for the up close thorough video!!
Not sure how you do it. You answer the correct questions and thoughts that most people with ask doing their plumbing... like a mind reader !!
😏
This is a great instructional video with a bunch of important caveats I haven't found in any of the videos I've seen yet. Great job, thank you!
You are most welcome, please share if you can, it help s the channel tremendously ✌✌
Man I'm so lucky this popped up in my feed. Got one coming tomorrow. Had no idea about the expansion tank. Thanks!
👌👌👌
Clean, Efficient, Great Tips, .. if only all places had the competence and understanding of this video. I've lived many placed and the property has horrible nightmare pipe setups and the management companies all are clueless of it all. scary.
😇👍
Thanks,
Mine was easy enough to see that it went bad as it was leaking water and air. Easy replacement and adjustment, Thanks, Scotty B
I use to not like these videos but I love them as I get more business from homeowners trying to play plumber. There’s so many variables that 10 videos covering this issue couldn’t cover everything. There’s bonding issues, grounding issue and volume issues which you failed to cover.
Awesome, glad you are getting work, cheers! And for the parts I failed to mention, that's what the comment section is for 😉
Instead of paying for someone else's vacations, big fancy trucks and expensive colleges for their kids, I just love saving hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars per repair, and then investing the savings into more and more professional quality tools, which enables me to take on bigger and bigger jobs myself. All of which have passed code inspection on the first pass, because I do my research and I know how to read the IRC and muni codes. And in 40 years, I've never had to place a panic call for a professional to bail me out. Between me playing plumber, electrician, carpenter, gardener and ASE auto mechanic, I've managed to equip a pretty nice shop and auto maintenance bay, complete with 80 gallon air compressor, BendPak two post hydraulic lift, and about $35k in hand and power tools. All paid for out of the money I have saved on labor, inflated material and parts costs, and calling fees over the course of almost four decades of DIY work. Thank you Internet, thank you RUclips, and of course, thank you to folks like Julio!
I know this video is 6 months old, watching this is super interesting, we do things much different in South Africa, like prvs are mandatory here, max 87psi, we work in kPa and not psi, our prvs come with a relief valve that screws directly into the prv, with built in shut offs, for roughly 80 usd.. I'd love to have a chat when I catch the next live chat
We all want to know how to increase our water pressure
They are called electric booster pumps.
Just move your house further down hill.
I really don't
There’s a difference between pressure and flow. If your pressure valve is bad, you can have super high dangerous pressure, but a weak flow. When you have a functional valve, your flow at the faucets and hose bibs will most definitely improve because pressure is distributed evenly throughout your system. Sounds odd, but it’s true.
@@rickjames6948 ,,
I can’t wait for the pressure increase pump.
Good vid, now how to raise my water pressure.
You'll need a booster pump for that.
Lots of fatty foods, coffee, and stress!
Get a pressure reading from your street side of your plumbing. Sometimes your local fire dept could also be a good source for that information. If your street psi is already low, you’ll need a booster. In this scenario you’ll need a licensed plumber.
The city pressure is probably 100 psi or more. You're prv is probably set to about 30. So you can twist the dial either way you can make it higher
Good design is to run the water for the hosebibs without being tied to the prv so you get high pressure hoses
Where would the pressure valve be located on a new 2020 house?
I'm just back from holidays and I felt like a PRV the whole time
The one and only time I've soldered copper was installing a prv on 1". Couldn't use shark bites since it was roll copper pipe coming out of the slab. Pressure was spiking at 100 psi on urinal and toilet shutoff.
The thing I want to know is where do you get the PRVs with unions on both sides. The supply houses we use have I think watts with only one union and it always causes more digging than should be necessary. What funny to me as someone in Texas is saying that “you’ll probably be putting it in the wall”. We put ours a foot from the meter in the front yard.
if you loosen the unions on the prv to make repairs around it, would you need to replace the rubber gaskets? If so where is the best place to get just the two rubber gaskets. I have a wilkins 1 inch prv
Great video! Question, if I don't install the thermal expansion tank, but I regularly use the TPV to release excess pressure from my hot water heater, will that suffice? Thanks.
you have the best videos for us beginners. thank you.
😊😊😊
I want to know who thumbed this video down? What are your reasons? This is great content, edited down to around 10 minutes, and explained perfectly! Great video thanks!
Haters 🤣🤣🤣
Love the way you explained
Very informative, especially for DIY folks!😊
Thank you!!!
Great video. Thanks for sharing. Shouldn't we use dielectric unions for water heater, and expansion tank connections?
Thanks in advance for sharing your experience and knowledge.
Thanks! Well, you can use dielectric unions, but they are more expensive and they don't really serve much.
Great videos. What are the brass adapters that you installed at the water heater and expansion tank? Thanks.
Male/female adaptors they are called.
great stuff, thanks for posting. Looking forward to the video on increasing pressure!
You bet! Thanks Geoff!!
Our munisiple water supply also comes in at between 145 and 290 psi that's why prvs are mandatory
Wow, I thought mine was really high at 105 to 110 PSI. 290 PSI, that’s a crazy number.
@@stevebabiak6997 290 doesn't happen often but we get surges in the dead of night where it peaks very close to 290
You can install a second shut off ball valve just after the PRV so that you don’t have to drain water if you ever have to service the PRV - which you need to do to clean the screen / filter.
💯
Can you recommend pressure test gauges that would be good to use for permanently install before and after the PRV? And a recommended Drain-cock? I guess, are there some main go-to brands to use for plumbing parts, etc. I am not sure if I should trust all the products at the big box stores. Thanks.
I just get the stuff at the big box store to be dead honest 🤷♂️
Will turning the screw without loosening the lock nut cause any damage?
You won't be able to turn it.
I have a PRV just before my water heater. But the water pressure to the rest of the house is too high. Should the plumber have installed it at the main water line coming into the house, and not way down the line at my water heater? My water heater doesn't have a thermal expansion tank either. Also, can I install a EB25 at the main line entrance and leave the PRV at the water heater location?
Yeah well if he skipped a few branches, those branches won't be regulated. Some PRVs have a check valve in them, some don't, if yours has a check valve, it won't allow pressure from your system back into the city, which means you need a tank. As for having 2 PRVs, I don't see any issues there.
Quick correction at 3:15. The "PRV" shown in the video is a regulator. A regulator is not the same thing as a PRV. A PRV is the valve installed in your water heater. The R stands for Relief, not Reducing. A Pressure *Relief* Valve has a slim metal handle which allows for the *relief* of pressure. A Pressure *Reducing* Valve (which is not called a PRV, but a regulator) has no such pressure relieving valve but instead has a diaphragm inside which reduces, or *regulates* , the water pressure to a lower pressure. Do NOT go into a plumbing store asking for a PRV when you need a regulator.
I always heard of those as TPR valves (Temperature Pressure Relief). Good to know that these may be called PRVs to avoid confusion in the future. I would have just assumed PRV meant Pressure Regulating Valve
Thanks for video! So i had a PSI of 120 in the house and had plumber install a PRV, its now set to 75 PSI. He didn't install a expansion tank, i currently have a tankless gas water heater. Is this needed? What issues can happen without a expansion tank?
DO you have a combi or a conventional heater?
@@Got2Learn sorry im still learning this, its a bosch C950 ES NG
Yeah that's a combi boiler, so the expansion tank is most likely on the heating side, you shouldn't need an expansion tank of the potable side as it only heats when there's a demand so the system isn't considered "closed" ;)
@@Got2Learn Crap! the plumber didn't install any expansion tanks!
Ohhh...check the installing guide to see if they mention one in the diagrams..
Awesome video! can you do a follow up video on how to differentiate between Water Pressure Relief Valves that require an expansion tank and those that don't - not quite clear on how to spot the difference.
Sure thing!
@@Got2Learn also - closed loop vs open loop system, how to know what you have? :)
@@aldoogie824 good idea thanks!!!
Brilliant, as usual! Merci, mon ami!!!
Fait plaisir!!!
Good and useful video, just a quick one, why did you install the thermal expansion tank while you installed an E3 PRV in this video?
I didn't have another one for the sake of the video, but normally you wouldn't need one ;)
You showed two separate models of the PRV constructions when discussing about possible problems/issues of the PRVs - one in talking about the filter and gaskets while showing an assembly of the Zurn Wilkins model which is completely different where the filter and gasket comes together as an assembly. My latter failed to relieve and control any pressure. So does that mean I can just replace the whole assembly of the Zurn Wilkens model?
If main line is coming from outside, in what order should it go in? City water meter, shut off valve, and then PRV? Or what order?
Main shut-off, meter and PRV.
Thank you very quick
My water pressure is high right now 100 psi and I am putting in a PRV to set at about 60 psi for the indoor plumbing fixtures. Would this effect how a gasoline pressure washer is used around my house, should I pipe my garden hose spickets before the PRV so they stay at the city water pressure ?
I don't think your washer will be affected but if you think your sprinklers will be weak, I suggest not reducing them.
Your pressure washer probably operates at 2000+ psi. A difference of 40psi does not really matter as long as it get's a sufficient volume of water.
Hello, I loved your video. Question here, if I have tankless water heater do I still need expansion tank or just water hammer arrestor near the PRV? Thanks
You need to ask your heater's manufacture as they are all different, chance are you'll need an expansion tank, no need for water hammer arrestors if your pipes aren't knocking.
@@Got2Learnthanks for your response, is there any specific type expansion tank that you would recommend for the tankless water heater?
@@kellykai4068 Owners manual should give you an expansion tank size based on your city pressure and water heater model, every installation is different.
so your water cut off valve was installed inside your wall? what good is that?
There's an access trap.
Very good video 😁👌🏻👏🏻 also, 220k subs 😍😍😍😍😍 amazing!!!!!!!!
😉😉😉
Good informative video about the pressure regulator
👌👌👌
Morning your videos are awesome, I have howling in my pipes I hear the noise primarily in my master bath but also hear the howling when the water is turned on in the kitchen or the other bathroom. Can you help me?
5:40AM Utah
That could be a bad valve, most times it's that.
Just installed a Moen Flo and found an interesting situation. When I shut off most faucets I get a rise in pressure from around 55 to 60-65 PSI. It appears my water hammer arrestors are somehow trapping the spike and the one way valve at the meter is keeping it. I noticed that one way valve must have a slow leak as I see the pressure eventually falls back to 55 PSI. I run a tankless water heater and will be adding a small expansion tank to that setup to hopefully reduce this change in pressure a little bit. I've not really noticed much increase caused by running the hot water as most of the expansion of the pipes happens pretty quickly. I have PEX, Copper and CPVC in the home, yep it's a mess.
Good idea on the expansion tank, let us know how that goes!
@@Got2Learn Added a little ST-1 expansion bulb to the tankless. Water hammer is now only boosting the pressure to 57-58 PSI from 55 vs the 60-65+ that it was. Just crazy how the hammer arrestors can act like a hammer pump boosting the pressure. If I didn't have a backflow preventer on the service line it wouldn't matter none.
I see companies selling thermal expansion valves that are additional. Also most zurn bypass.
Shark bite thermal expansion relief can substitute tank but will just leak the water out after 125psi
Thank you so much I’ve learned a lot.
Do you need a hot water heater to set this up. I’m in Puerto Rico have just a gas hot water heater. I have no electricity. I installed a pressure reader valve and a water pressure regulator. I still experience my filter canister cracking and they are expensive here. I’ve lost 2 so bought a taller one but would like to see no more leaks. I’ve been dealing with this 2 years. I got the 25-75 psi but it’s set at 50 psi I get low water in sink but it ok at washer and shower.
No water heater needed.
Hi, if the water pressure is higher than normal, is the water/utility provider supposed to provide the PRV or is it the homeowner responsibility? Thank you.
Homeowner's responsibility 👍
I just had a new water heater installed replacing an old leaker. I thought everything was great, but the PRV leaks constantly into a P-trap drain and it's driving me crazy. The only time it doesn't leak is when another fixture in the condo is in use. I do have a PRV in the unit. What do you think is the problem? Thanks for any insight!
Could be excess pressure.
Maybe needs a vent pipe
@got2learn, could you install the drain valve before the prv valve, or do it have to go after it?
I install one before and after to be able to get a reading differential, but you could install one after or before, doesn't really matter 👌
Good and informative video
Thanks!
WELL DONE!
Thank you, Sir!
Thank you too!
this also counts as a back flow prevent er, i have a 2.5 gallon water heater and one of these installed, if i put in the water heater do i need an expansion tank or is the piping enough with it being only 2.5 gallons? i know this sounds weird but i have a line of my sprinkler system going to a tree house that has 2 sinks and would like to put this in for the sinks but am concerned about that making their be too much pressure.
Not all count as a back flow, you must check with the manufacture!
Expansion tanks are usually label to be hung sideways or upside down like shown here
Yes, some people tend to install them bladder side down but it's not recommended, thanks for confirming John!
Got2Learn you can always message me if you want me to review your video before people use it
Very nice of you thanks John!!
Hi great video. Would I need a eb25 valve or a regular one way prv if I have a tankless on demand water heater? Not sure if this relates. New to this. Thank you.
Do you need an expansion tank if you have a tankless hot water heater?
Yes, same thing.
Doesn't the expansion tank give difficulty when measuring pressure later? Essentially you are then measuring the psi in the tank and not getting an accurate water pressure reading.
Hello, can u make video on a (hot water) return line? With a pump, without a pump, with a backflow preventer, without a backflow preventer, if you need a expansion tank, thank you so much!
Will add it to the list, thanks!!!
Is there a reason why you used mip adapters to the prv,rather then direct sweating ?
The adaptors were threaded, but no, there's no difference ;)
Can the water pressure regular be fully tight but the pressure is still high?
Did you get to the pressure increase video?
I see the common setup is to place the PRV after main shutoff valve. What if I installed the PRV before the main shutoff valve to the house? Here is the setup: shutoff valve from sidewalk --> PRV --> shutoff valve to the house. I would think things will still work.
Yes it would work however if you needed to do maintenance work on it you would need to close the sidewalk valve, here in Montreal only the city can close that valve so it all depends on if you have access or not...
@@Got2Learn gotcha. I have access to the valve on the sidewalk.
Awesomeee
so tightening the screw increases the pressure?
yup.
Where is the PVR usually located? My house was built in 1966.
Like the spray bottle hack.
Can this be installed in between the main supply and water meter? My meter runs blazingly fast and burns the wallet.
Won't change anything ;)
My water pressure usually is good but in May 2021 it completely stopped after a few weeks of hardly any pressure. Turn sink on for 30 seconds and it'd stop completely. We replaced the regulator valve and viola. It was fixed! Now exactly 1 year later it is doing the exact same thing. Could it be possible it is the expansion tanks fault? I plan on taking the regulator off and checking the seals and everything, not even sure if that would even be the reason why.
How about if you have a tankless heater, where would you add the expansion tank??
On the heating side, only if you have a combi.
Just had a new HW installed. They added an expansion tank per code changes. Tank set at 70 PSI. They noted on expansion tank as supply as 70, however I started getting hammering. So checked the water pressure and the reading is about 95PSi. Attempting to adjust to reduce to meet the 70 PSI at tank, however when I got to 70PSi on supply side, still hammering. Reduced to 40 PSI, hammering stopped. Move pressure to preset settings 50PSi, no hammering, but the tank is still at 70PSi, Should I reduce the tank to match PRV setting or leave as is?
Update: can't have current PRV over 45PSI or hammering/vibration will start. So it looks like a new PRV will be required.
Does the expansion tank has to be installed very close to the heater tank [cold water inlet pipe]? Or can can be installed further out downstream?
The closer the better!
@@Got2Learn Thanks for the response.
@@paulc2548 👌
My water pressures is 100psi. It has been 5 yrs +, no issues at all.
Hi.Remember,these PRVs fail with time,so they must be always accessible,to repair,replace,or clean.how do u know u have high or low pressure? have always a gauge on hand.take measures in the night,as neighborhood,is not in high use demand of water.If you live near commercial,industrial place,u could have high pressure,as this is necessary,for fire protection.If using 2 PRVs, u can install in parallel,or series,depending of ur particular,situation.
I have a slab foundation currently dealing with slab leak and realizing how poorly designed and installed my system was when this house was built 14 years ago.... Main shut-off is just outside the foundation. This main branches with a "T" inside the foundation and so I need to put a pressure reducing valve between the main shut-off and foundation. The shut-off is also down in the ground about 18" in a box. Can these reducing valves be installed down in the ground? This is north texas where it does freeze but not down in the ground (so that shut-off has yet to freeze but knock on wood). My pressure last time I checked was 90 PSI so high. Working to bypass that slab leak I have been opening up the manifolds in the walls (I think a monkey did the soldering there is solder and green from flux everywhere!!)...I was able to bypass the slab leak for now. But no hot water now to half the house. So while I'm working on all this I'm looking for a way to have pressure reduction to affect both cold branches. thanks for your videos. Massive help!
If you can install it inside it's always preferable, but if it doesn't freeze outside, it can be installed there. Thank you so much for commenting and I hope your project turns out well, have a great day Vincent!
Did you solder from bottom to top? How do you keep the top fittings in place?
Bottom to top normally, yeah.
These control water pressure but what about volume? Do they reduce the amount of volume passing through the pipe?
Thank you for the great information
Most welcome!
Does that work with pvc or abs?
This is only for water lines.
Although I'm not a plumber, the Zurn Wilkins NR3XL has the internal bypass check valve feature and therefore, the addition of the expansion tank in this video was unnecessary.
what is the expected lifespan of these? thanks!
Depends on the usage, the imcoming pressure, if it's installed outdoors or indoors, really depends, but they last a long time.
@@Got2Learn in my case it would be installed indoors, the incoming pressure is 110 PSI. Thanks for your answer.
@@ImNotADeeJay that's considerably high, just make sure you get a good one and you'll be good for a while, and don't forget to clean out the strainer regularly if it has one 🤘
So what is the life expectancy of the regulator? I am thinking 6 or 7 years.
After replacing this valve, the pipes now have air in them, any idea how to get the air out? Its mainly in the toilets
Many thanks for yours video's!
My pleasure!
My water pressure seems high but can't find a regulator as place was built in 1946. I want to put in a regulator where the old school water meter is in utility room which is not used any more since there is one out front by the road.
Very good sir thanks
So nice of you
I couldn’t find anything on the internet about the EB25 not requiring an expansion tank, can anyone verify this correct? The companies website showed a diagram of the installation and it showed an expansion tank. Thanks
I installed a pressure regulating valve but I can't loosen the lock nut to adjust the pressure. It's stuck. Do you have any idea why?
Is it an old regulator?
@@Got2Learn No, it's a new one. It's the Sharkbite EB45.
@@alexdmd were you able to undo it once, or are you doing it for the 1st time?
@@Got2Learn It's the first time. When I try to loosen the nut, the entire chamber moves as well. I tried holding the chamber with some pliers but the nut does not move.
@@alexdmd hmmm...sounds welded on, if you have a pencil torch you can heat the nut up a bit to crack the weld, try that...
Hello I don't like pressure reducer made of plastic they last for 1-2 years and they become useless. Invest in brass made reducer, you can take off the cap and change the gasket more economic and last longer. Best regards
The rating on my PRV is 15-75 psi. Does that mean that the max pressure I can get is 75 psi? If so, that is great for me. I will not have to worry about configuring the unit for too much pressure.
Yup!
What if you have an expansion tank at the boiler??? We have boiler hot water and heat so I wouldn't think the expansion location would matter but maybe I am wrong???
Still nervous to try soldering but the 3/4 looks like it barely takes any solder to completely fill the gap i see guys who really fire it in there
Great clips
Like always
Thank you for sharing
Yw!!!
Thx for sharing this.
👌
Great detail.
Thank you! Cheers!