1/2 in. Press Brass Ball Valve with Drain (Pack of 5)

The Plumber's Choice 1/2 inch press brass ball valve with drain is a great valve, it has an o-ring seal that helps with keeping it leak free. The ball valve has a true shut-off, and you can drain the line of water before cutting it. These are great valves that are easy to install with the propper tools. They work great on remodel jobs with in the wall piping.

The Plumber's Choice brass press valve is a perfect choice for your press piping systems. This ball valve features a forged brass construction, a stainless steel ball, a vinyl grip lever handle, a blow out proof stem, purge drain and PRESS connections. These valves will require a press tool in order to install, so these are not for your average DIYer.

This is one very well manufactured valve. Specifications are within IAPMO's: NSF/ANSI-61, NSF/ANSI-372, IGC-157 and conforms to ANSI Z1157. Rating is at least 250 psi WOG within a temperature Range: -20°F to 300°F. Body is made from dezincification resistant lead free forged brass with mirror polished stainless steel ball in PTFE seat. The seating and packing makes it suitable for emergency repairs few decades down the line with soldering if needed. The press O-ring is EPDM which is the top choice as it comes to press fittings, I am amazed that HD, the manufacturer Everflow and the distributor Pro Plumbing Supply managed to launch this valve at this price, which is extremely competitive. This is top of the line quality at mid-range price. The fitting of all parts is tight, quality of material is just superb and the right composition between being malleable enough to ensure a good seal and yet rigid to withstand temperature variances through many years to come. As with all compression fittings, you have to prepare the parts by making a straight cut on the pipe, preferably L type. The cut seats at the depth ridge so it has to be straight and deburred to ensure no cavitation happens in that area. To make sure you don't scuff the O-ring you have to deburr on the outside of the pipe too. Once you're done with this, making the compression is straight forward. I used a Milwaukee compression tool and a dab of nylog, which may be overkill, but I wanted to make the connection outlast the house. Handle is chrome plated and vinyl dipped. The drain cap holds tightly and has plenty of threads not to worry about stripping it. This is a great high quality valve at a very good price.

I can't believe how good this product is for that price. Such high grade ball valves are twice that price, even at plumbing supply houses. Crimped that with regular Milwaukee pro press tool and job was well done in a couple of seconds. I took my time though making sure that the copper is deburred, inside and out, and that it is clean and free from and scuffs, scrapes and imperfections. I am not sure if I should've used additive such as nylog, but I always do on my connections, to triple ensure that I will have a perfect seal for decades to come. As it is shared effort between the crimping tool, the installation process and the fitting itself, I took my time preparing a straight cut of the pipe as it seats all around against the stop inside the neck. Those connections can last longer than soldered connection, but you have to be precise and diligent with preparing the parts, specifically, making sure that the pipe is clean and deburred. Once I did that, it slid right through, without any wobble and was a good fit on both M and L type pipe. Although it is usually recommended using the thicker-walled L pipe on press fittings, I had perfect seals on the connections with both types. The press O-ring is EPDM which is the best choice for press-fitting connections, not only because it is longest lasting, but also because it retains its qualities at wider temperature differences and does not change properties with age. Some as some fittings may fail and installers may decide to solder this connection, using a EPDM rubber is also the better choice as there is no runoff when heated and it shrinks when overheated, leaving space for the solder to fill out the gap. Although the press connection neck is long at 22 mm, ball seating is PTFE as it is more resistant to being torch heated during an emergency. Handle is vinyl covered chrome plated. Machining is very precise, ball valve was hand polished, there are no sharp edges or corners anywhere. The valve is rated at 250 psi WOG in between temperature range of -20°F to 300°F. Ratings and approvals are IAPMO: NSF/ANSI-61, NSF/ANSI-372 and IGC-15. It is just a great valve at a great price.

Am currently upgrading all plumbing connections prior to selling the house and was confronted with connections that were seeping green crust. Addressed the hard water issue and now addressing the crusted connections. Using three different sizes of ball valves depending on where the replacement being made (1/2" for faucets, 1" for water mains, 3/4" for risers). Information quote from a plumber was quite expensive, so took the alternate path of using these Press Ball Valves. Rented a compression tool to do the work, used the battery operated unit versus the hand unit as the battery unit head rotates to fit into smaller places. If you take your time and measure out what has to be cut, as these new units are bigger than the original valves, there is no problem. I even changed the color of the handles using a color dip patch product to match the instructions on how the piping works for the new owners. Additionally no problem with burning anything using a torch, or catching the insulation on fire. When matched the cost of having a plumber do the work with labor for soldering, The price was a little more than half the estimated cost because the valves are more expensive.

The plumber's choice 3/4" ball valve with drain are very well manufactured and engineered . They're manufactured to very high standards with top quality materials and orings. These's valves are designed to be used with the press type machines with are quick and easy-to-use, and also have the benefits of not having to worry about the need of using a torch or any of the problems that are associated with a open flame in certain areas.