Using PVC valves to control water in a system is not difficult and can be extremely rewarding when done correctly. These valves are especially useful in home irrigation & gardening systems, homemade fish tanking piping, and other such home applications. Today we will be looking at a few different butterfly valve applications and why these pieces of equipment are so useful.
Many valves are made from PVC or CPVC including butterfly valves, ball valves, check valves, and more. Each type has it's own strengths and weaknesses, but butterfly valves are unique in their body style and the way they regulate flow. With a quarter-turn disc that sits amid liquid flow even while open, nothing else is quite like a butterfly valve. Further down we will discuss "wafer butterfly valves vs. lug butterfly valves," but first let's look at some uses for butterfly valves!
Common Butterfly Valve Applications
Butterfly valves are a quarter-turn valve that has a plastic or metal disc in the middle that rotates on a metal rod or "stem." If the stem is the body of the butterfly, then the disc is the "wings." Because the disc always sits in the middle of the pipeline, the fluid is slowed slightly as it rushes through an open valve. The following examples are a few jobs -- some specific and some general -- that butterfly valves are perfect for!
Garden Irrigation Systems
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- These systems are often made up of PVC or CPVC pipe, with elbows, tees, and couplings connecting everything. They run adjacent to or over the top of backyard gardens and drip water, sometimes enriched with nutrients, onto the plants and vegetables below. This is achieved through many means, including perforated hoses and drilled pipes.
- Butterfly valves can be utilized to start and stop flow in these systems. They can even isolate certain parts of the irrigation system so you can water only the thirstiest of your plants. Butterfly valves are popular for this because they are inexpensive
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Pressurized Applications
- When pressurized air or other gases are involved, butterfly valves are perfect! These applications can be tough on valves, especially if they open slowly. But if you use automatic actuation on your butterfly valve, it can be opened almost instantly. Protect your pipeline and other equipment with a butterfly valve!
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Backyard Pools
- Pools need water delivery and drainage systems that allow for backwashing. Backwashing is when you run water backwards through a system. This dislodges chlorine and other chemicals that build up in pool piping. For backwashing to work, valves must be in place that allow the reverse flow of water without damaging the equipment.
- Butterfly valves are ideal for this task as they completely stop fluid when closed. They are also extremely easy to clean since they have such thin bodies. This is important to consider when pool water is involved!
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Space-Restrictive Applications
- If you're just generally wondering where to use butterfly valves, systems with space restrictions are ideal. In small spaces, putting together an effective piping system can be challenging. Pipes and fittings don't take up too much room, but equipment like strainers and valves can be unnecessarily clunky. Butterfly valves typically require less space than ball valves and other types of shutoff valves, which makes them perfect for flow control in a tight space!
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Wafer Butterfly Valves vs. Lug Butterfly Valves
As promised at the top of this article, we will now discuss the difference between wafer and lug style butterfly valves. This information can also be found in a previous blog post. Both types of valve do the same job (and do it well), but each has its own important subtleties.
Wafer style butterfly valves have 4-6 holes in which alignment lugs are inserted. These go through the mounting flange on both sides and through the valve's frame, allowing the pipeline to squeeze up close to the valve on both sides. Wafer butterfly valves have fantastic pressure tolerance! The problem with this style is that the entire system must be shut down if you want to disconnect the piping on either side of the valve.
Lug butterfly valves have 8-12 holes for attachment lugs. The flanges on each side attach to half of the lugs each. This means that the flanges are each independently mounted onto the valve itself. This creates a strong seal and allows maintenance to be done on one side of the pipeline without having to shut the entire system down. The main downside of this style is a lower pressure tolerance.
Basically, lug style valves are more convenient to work with and maintain, but wafer style valves can handle higher pressures. For more info on wafer butterfly valves vs. lug butterfly valves, read this great article. Check out our high quality, wholesale-priced PVC and CPVC butterfly valves by clicking the links below!