leakvalve
A 3/4 ball valve just installed in the basement of a 2 storey house is leaking about 1 drop of water a min where the arrow in the picture is pointing. Is the seal going to swell, of will the valve have to be replaced?
The valve is Watts, from Home Depot. It was soldered with lead free solder. It shuts off water with no leaks.
YES! I came across a 10:1 flow rate differential between 3/4 ball (25 GPM) and 1/2 globe (2.2 GPM) There's almost a 50% reduction, just going from 3/4 pipe to 1/2 pipe (I inferred the pipe size flow differential by comparing 1/2" and 3/4" ball valves of the same type here). Table 2 here Compares 2" ball at 228 and a globe at 44 for a ratio of 5:1, then add in pipe diameter and 10:1 seems reasonable.
Be sure they put in a full port ball valve in bronze with drain (on house side). Full port has the least flow restriction. Bronze is safe for potable water, the drain is for future repairs to drain the lines.
If a valve has directionality, it will almost universally be cast as an arrow in of the body, as seen in this globe (aka stop) valve:
I've never seen a ball valve that is directional. If you look inside, you'll see the guts of it are symmetrical.
I would say the general rules of thumb for this are:
Best Answer
You could try tightening the packing nut (just about where your leak is - the one under the handle - probably easier with the handle off.)
Very unlikely that the packing will swell, as it's typically teflon or similar plastic.