new 400A valve makes more noise!


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Old 07-14-05, 02:07 PM
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Exclamation new 400A valve makes more noise!

I have read many replies in this forum to tell people to replace a noisy valve with a Fluidmaster 400A.

So, I replaced a broken fill valve with a brand new 400A. When it refills, the new one is a lot more nosier than the old one, which is not a Fluidmaster. There is no vibration, and the noise is not a high pitch or a low humming. When I turned the shut-off valve to half way, it reduced the noise, but not by much.

I guess the 400A is cheaper than my old one, if I can still find them in a store.

With the 400A, does anyone know how to reduce its "normal" refill noise? Or, does anyone know if there is another better valve from the noise perspective on the market?

Thanks.
 
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Old 07-14-05, 09:31 PM
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Sounds like you have high water pressure.....or the isolation valve to the toilet is breaking off debri and heading into the fill valve.


Those 400A fill valves are the best valve I have seen yet; Kohler puts one in every toilet they manufacture just about.
 
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Old 07-15-05, 11:43 AM
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What is an isolation valve? Where it should be located?

I have heard about the high water pressure issue. What is the normal range? And how can I test or control the water pressure? Keep in mind that we have city water.

Thanks for your reply.
 
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Old 07-15-05, 11:59 AM
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The isolation valve is the valve under the toilet tank that supplies the toilet with water. You can get a pressure checking gauge at home centers. They usually connect to an outside faucet. Run the water first, before connecting the gauge. Then connect it and turn on the outside faucet and check the pressure. Anything over 80 pounds is high. Usually, water supply pressure is about 40 to 80 pounds but I have seen lots of posts lately where the pressure is over 100. In that case, you would need a pressure reducing valve installed after the meter. High pressures cause many noises in plumbing systems and a lot of faucets are not made for these high pressures. Cities sometimes increase the water pressure to accomodate future subdivisions and fail to tell current customers about the change. Good luck.
 
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Old 07-18-05, 08:01 AM
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Lightbulb

How could this be a water pressure issue? My old refill valve was very quite. Are you saying the 400A is more pressure sensitive than the old one?

It could well be the isolation valve, because it is 15 years old. But the question is still the same: why the old refill valve did not have any noise?

I did change the water supply line from a straight copper to a flexible line, since the 400A's water supply pipe is about 1/4 inch shorter than the old one. I bought the shortest flexible line I could find (12 inch.), but I still had to make a loop in the middle to fit it in. Could this be the source of the noise?

I don't know how relevant this is: my toilet is a one piece low profile type. The lowest position of 400A can fit in easily.
 
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Old 08-01-05, 07:34 PM
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I bought a water pressure meter and the reading is more than 100.

Should I call the city or the water company to install the presure reducing valve?

Is it a DIY project? Which brand and model should I pick? Will my wife complain about not enough pressure in our 2nd floor shower?

Thanks.
 
 

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