An angle seat valve is a type of valve that uses an angled disk to control flow, either in or out. These valves are usually found on high-pressure gas lines where the fluid is potentially hazardous.
The valve itself is just a simple metal disk with one hole at the center and a larger hole around it. The two holes are shaped so that when the disk faces up, air or fluid can flow in; when it faces down, stand or fluid flows out. The valve sits inside a pipe and slides up and down for opening and closing purposes, being pushed by hand or by a mechanical component like piston arm movement.
What an Angle Seat Valve is
There are a few different kinds of angle seat valves, including straight-through and double block-and-bleed. Straight-through valves have been in use for hundreds of years, so they’re some of the older valves available today. The valve is simple and easy to repair, but it doesn’t shut off as tightly or quickly as newer models. Double block and bleed valves are newer to the marketplace because they require more force from hand pumps or mechanical parts to open them completely.
Most angle seat valves are made with metal alloys such as brass, copper, bronze, and stainless steel. They may also be constructed from plastic material if they need to be lightweight.
How Does an Angle Seat Valve Work?
There are three main steps to using an angle seat valve:
- You open the valve by pressing the disk down and to the side so that it opens up to allow fluid in or out. This is usually done with one hand, so if you’re holding onto a tool with the other hand, you’ll need to be careful not to damage the area around you.
- You close the valve by pushing the disk up and over to cover up any hole that may be open. Once that’s done, your job is done unless there’s some malfunctioning that needs repair or replacement.
- You repair the valve once you’re done with it. The parts that hold the disk together are called bearings, and they wear out over time. When this happens, you’ll either need to replace the bearing or rebuild it with new materials and a new assembly.
Types of Angle Seat Valves
There are a few basic angle seat valves: straight-through, double block and bleed, and auto bleed. They all work in the same way.
Straight-Through Angle Seat Valves
This is the most common type of angle seat valve. The disk is shaped to face up when you open it, so the hole is covered with your hand or tool when the pressure builds up enough to open it up. When this happens, you wash fluid into the line or out of it as needed. Some straight-through valves have paddles that prevent them from opening too wide, but this is usually fixed by simply pushing harder on one side or another of the valve when you open it.
Double Block and Bleed Angle Seat Valves
The double block and bleed valve doesn’t have a button to press or anything else that will open the valve. Instead, it has two small levers that can slide up and down. The disk is shaped so that when the disk face sees down, you can cover up any area of the disk that might be open. The lever you see furthest away from you will be on top to keep fluid away from your hand or tool when it opens up all the way. This lever is usually on the bottom of the valve once fully closed, allowing fluid to flow into or out of the pipe as needed.
Auto Bleed Angle Seat Valves
This is the newest type of angle seat valve. It’s a mechanical version of the double block-and-bleed valve because instead of levers that slide up and down, it uses a piston arm to open and closes it. The piston arm will go up or down one side at a time until it reaches the point where air or fluid will flow through it. Once this happens, the liquid flows out of the system while air stays in. This valve can have adjustable pressure settings, and some have permanent pressure settings you can only turn by hand. It also will only leak in some circumstances.
Operating an Angle Seat Valve
Operating an angle seat valve may be easy, but you have to be careful when using it. The fluid or air that you’ll be moving through the system can put a lot of force on your valve if the pressure is too high. To help protect yourself, wear safety goggles and earplugs when using an angle seat valve. Also, avoid valves in high-pressure areas since they could cause a burst or fire if they malfunctioned at the wrong time.
If there’s some leak in your system and the pressure rises, there is always the possibility of a rupture occurring. When this happens, you can try to shut off the source of the leak, but you should immediately open up your angle seat valve and bleed out the pressure so it doesn’t cause an explosion. If you have any type of training in first aid or firefighting, it’s a good idea to memorize this process so that you can take action if something goes wrong.
Applications of Angle Seat Valves
Angle seat valves are often used in air and gas transportation systems since they are very useful in many cases. They can also be found on heater/cooler systems and other tools.
They’re typically used where you need a quick way to control fluid or gas flow, such as with a mechanical piston arm or within the body of a machine that needs to adjust the pressure around it.
They’re also used to control the flow of liquid. However, this use is uncommon because liquids require different valves – usually something with a stem or spout for controlling the liquid flow direction.
The one place you don’t want to be using an angle seat valve is with automobile systems since that can be potentially dangerous if something goes wrong. You wouldn’t want to lose control of your vehicle and rush over and disconnect the valve. Remember to use good judgment when dealing with these valves, especially if it isn’t a high-pressure situation.
Conclusion
If you have a simple plumbing system, you don’t need an angle seat valve in your building. However, they’re a great choice if you want to control the pressure in your system or deal with certain types of gases or liquids that require pressure adjustment. You can always make sure to test your valves every once in a while to make sure that they’re still working correctly.
Use angle seat valves in fluid systems to stop gas and air leakage!
