How to protect valves in frozen conditions

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How to protect valves in freezing conditions has always been a common and important issue for us—how to safeguard valves under freezing conditions. Sometimes, even in the cold winter months, our systems need to operate continuously to ensure a supply of water. In this case, supplying water will be rather troublesome. This phenomenon is most common in metal valves and piping systems, which often lack the elasticity of plastic materials. When the water in these systems changes from a liquid state to a solid state and its volume increases, the valves and pipes may burst. Some of our clients in the north have encountered this problem and asked us for solutions. In this case, the valve was installed vertically; therefore, when the valve was closed, the water behind it could not be discharged. As this water froze and its volume expanded, it caused the valve body to burst. Preventing freezing and draining the valve can be achieved by opening the drain valve and removing the plugs on the valve body upstream and downstream of it. To better address the issue of valves freezing and cracking, Bormet has recently introduced a product in its home market named the “Automatic Anti-Freezing Drain Head”. This simple accessory can be installed on the expansion port of the valve (by simply removing the corresponding plug), without affecting its normal operation. When the valve is in operation, the valve plug seals tightly, preventing water from leaking out. When the pressure at the valve’s outlet drops below 5 meters of water head, it opens automatically to release the water in the pipeline, thus preventing the valve from cracking due to freezing. Antifreeze plugs are suitable for almost all valve applications (such as solenoid valves, pressure relief valves, and level control valves). We highly recommend using these products on valves that are normally closed, as the outlet of such valves experiences static water pressure due to the valve being closed. The use of such fittings will become even more common, especially in vertically installed or continuously pressurized systems. This automatic drain head has a pressure rating of PN10, making it suitable for most outdoor irrigation and municipal water supply systems. With this accessory, metal valves will be better suited for outdoor installation applications. Although plastic valves have rapidly become dominant in the irrigation sector, they still possess irreplaceable advantages in certain applications that require resistance to high pressure or significant stress.