No Water! Help!

[LukeHappe]

I turned off the water today in the house to take a quick look at the valves on the tub as the hot water recently stopped turning on (only at the tub). After an hour or so go back down to turn the water on as i've done in the past and am getting no water anywhere in the house. After turning the water back on you can tell there is no water coming into the pipes. I've searched around online and have found this to be common with gate valves breaking, however I have a ball valve.

Is it common for a ball valve to malfunction like this? Any suggestions other then have the water cut off and check the valve?

Thanks!

 

[johnjh2o]

There are many makes of ball valves. I have seen poorly made valves that the stems have snapped when trying to turn them back on or off. Check and see if this as happened to yours, remove the handle and check the stem. If it is broken then replacement of the valve is your next step.

John

 

[LukeHappe]

Thanks for the reply John ... Figured I'd stop back with a little recap of what ended up happening. Low and Behold it was NOT the ball valve! Called the water company to come shut the water off at the street so I could replace the valve. I am still amazed that they got there within 30 minutes of calling on a holiday. Guy that showed up came in to check out the valve and we quickly realized it was not the valve or the meter that was stopping the flow of water. After he left I took apart the pressure valve above the shut off and of course it was completely clogged with rust and crud. Cleaned it out .. put it back and bingo water works again. Once again I learn a valuable plumping lesson and things were much easier then I was making them out to be.

 

[havasu]

Thanks for the reply on correcting your problem. You don't know how many of us will remember another potential solution to a problem.

Once again, the local water companies have come to the rescue! I would recommend sending a quick note to his boss to let them know how you appreciated his quick response. This goes a long way in the event you need future assistance from them!

 

[LukeHappe]

Well hopefully it helps someone else in a similar experience .. I find these plumbing lessons I've learned the hard way the most important ones as I learn more things to try/check every time.

Agreed about the water company! Looking there number up online I was greeted by many unpleasant reviews making me dread the fact that I was going to have to deal with them. I was pleasantly surprised and all it took was someone taking a few minutes of their time to save me a ton of time and money. I will definitely sending an email their way.