How-To Guides & Tutorials

“Ball valve leaking” describes at least four different problems, and they have four different fixes. Before you compare valve designs, name the leak: This article is about the third one. A welded-body 2-piece ball valve has no bolted body joint, so it reduces one potential external leak path. That is a genuine structural difference. It

Do not start actuator selection by debating pneumatic versus electric. That question comes last. Before any brand or model enters the discussion, three things have to be confirmed: Until all three are confirmed, no actuator can be selected reliably. An actuator that matches the pipe size but not the torque will stall on a sticky

A manual, a pneumatic and an electric ball valve can share the same body, the same seats and the same fluid conditions. The difference is not inside the valve. It is in who or what rotates the ball, how often it happens, and what the system should do when air or power is lost. Selection

A working pneumatic ball valve automation package is more than a valve with an air cylinder on top. Before anything is ordered, at least seven things need to be confirmed: the valve body, the pneumatic actuator, the solenoid valve, air preparation and tubing, position feedback, the control signal, and the required behavior when air or

3-piece ball valve maintenance is built around one simple idea: the two end caps stay threaded or welded to the pipe, and the center section unbolts and comes out. Seats and seals can be replaced on a bench without cutting the line. For welded systems in particular, that is the difference between a planned maintenance