Cistern refilling very slowly

[RED2]

Hi - problem with cistern shown - installed around 15 years ago and has been trouble free until recently. Water inlet is now VERY slow - takes around 30 minutes to fill half cistern. Water pressure to all other taps and wc's is fine. Guessing inlet unit blocked in some way but unsure of how best to resolve this. Any guidance appreciated. Photo of inlet mechanism below.


P1130477 by A_chralaig, on Flickr

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Very common best way to get another decent amount of years is to change the fill valve

 

[king of pipes]

Time for a new inlet valve . Kop

 

[Ric2013]

To be honest, it probably just wants taking apart and reassembling with a new 'Part 2 washer' (technically it's a diaphragm but nobody calls it that), cost around 50p, and the nozzle cleaning out. That looks to me like a reasonably standard Part 3 valve (which is much the same as a Part 2 valve except the Part 3 is plastic) and, if so, it is designed to be serviceable. The reason I say you need a new washer is that I've seen washers in this kind of valve that are tattered shreds but still work reliably until they are removed and then never work again, so best to have one to hand.
Dismantling etc should be explained in any good DIY manual, but if you can get the large 'nut' directly under the arm pivot unscrewed, it should be fairly self-explanatory if you're at all mechanically minded.

 

[wiggers]

Hi, I wouldn’t bother repairing as it’s had it’s day, it looks like a fluid master pro 45b will fit straight in there good luck.

 

[Ric2013]

Hi, I wouldn’t bother repairing as it’s had it’s day, it looks like a fluid master pro 45b will fit straight in there good luck.

I was just thinking if it can be repaired, it turns a plumbing job into a relatively simple DIY task. Am I the only one thinking it's probably got another 15 years left in it (warranty not available on this product)?

 

[townfanjon]

New one required !!!!!

 

[king of pipes]

Get it changed dont mess around. Kop

 

[fixitflav]

I was just thinking if it can be repaired, it turns a plumbing job into a relatively simple DIY task. Am I the only one thinking it's probably got another 15 years left in it (warranty not available on this product)?

I agree, definitely worth dismantling it at least. Be interesting, and in the event (unlikely IMO) that it can't be repaired, there's nothing lost.

 

[Best]

Yes, you definitely could repair that valve just with a new diaphragm washer and perhaps cleaning the nozzle part. Certainly a job for a competent diyer.
But if it is on mains pressure, or looks aged and fragile, I would replace it with a brass tailed valve (Fluidmaster or similar) to give extra years service, quieter fill and risk free of a plastic tail developing a crack and floods.

 

[Welder]

100% a new diaphragm. Pennies for a perfectly fine fix.

 

[RED2]

Well I stripped, cleaned and reassembled it - quite straightforward and seems to be working properly now. Diaphragm washer looks ok but I might pop a new one in at some point. Took all of 20 minutes ....

 

[fixitflav]

Well done! Shows what you can do when you try. Was the 50p washer/diaphragm OK, or on the way out?

 

[Welder]

It will need replacing. When you get the new one you'll see how deformed it has become.

 

[Ric2013]

No holes in the old washer then. Amazingly, they can sometimes have holes in and still work, which was why I didn't recommend you dismantle until you had a new one. Glad it's working now, anyway.

 

[keith duval]

No holes in the old washer then. Amazingly, they can sometimes have holes in and still work, which was why I didn't recommend you dismantle until you had a new one. Glad it's working now, anyway.

had the same problem i.e long time filling. i had the time to strip it , but found no real problem. cost to replace i felt was not worth the 'cheap' repair. new one fitted, no worries about if it would perform for long, if you know what i mean.

 

[Ric2013]

I think that was what YorkshireDave was on about with his comment about the diaphragm washer deforming - they tend to stretch towards being in the closed position when relaxed so it is only the water pressure to push them open, and if the water pressure isn't very high, flow could then be poor, whereas the new one will sit in a more neutral way and so allow a better flow. I would hazard a guess that your valve was working on tank pressure and that what was wrong with your valve was just the washer (or you had tank pressure and the high pressure (white) nozzle fitted)?
You see, I am always very reluctant to just replace something and call it 'broken', because if I can't mend something and can't work out what is wrong with it either, I feel I have failed to learn anything, so I always try to work out what has gone wrong. Sometimes, I waste a lot of time, and sometimes I save myself a fortune. But I enjoy it

 

[fixitflav]

I think that was what YorkshireDave was on about with his comment about the diaphragm washer deforming - they tend to stretch towards being in the closed position when relaxed so it is only the water pressure to push them open, and if the water pressure isn't very high, flow could then be poor, whereas the new one will sit in a more neutral way and so allow a better flow. I would hazard a guess that your valve was working on tank pressure and that what was wrong with your valve was just the washer (or you had tank pressure and the high pressure (white) nozzle fitted)?
You see, I am always very reluctant to just replace something and call it 'broken', because if I can't mend something and can't work out what is wrong with it either, I feel I have failed to learn anything, so I always try to work out what has gone wrong. Sometimes, I waste a lot of time, and sometimes I save myself a fortune. But I enjoy it

I had just that problem when I moved into present house, Downstairs cistern fed from storage tank. Valve was small white plastic type (pilot-operated I think, needing mains pressure). Probably fitted with an eye on the £££ as the previous owner was a cheapskate, and lazy and incompetent with it! From memory, I don't think there was anything wrong with the internals, just needed more pressure. I replaced it with a conventional long arm diaphragm type, which cured it.

 

[Welder]

Spot on Ric
No point in going to work if you don't learn something every day

 

[SimonG]

Even though it's working now, get a new washer in.