Isovalve™ FAQs
If I decide to use Isovalve™ in the new house I’m building will it cost more than if I just use the previous standard method?
The total cost difference between using the Isovalve™ and the previous plumbing method is dependent on the number of fittings required. The use of an Isovalve™ generally replaces a test plug, brass barrel nipple and sometimes an angle valve or a chrome or brass elbow. In some cases the use of an Isovalve™ will be cheaper and in some cases it might cost slightly more than the parts previously used. Wherever the Isovalve™ is used there will be a considerable cost saving in terms of labour. Isovalve™ also make the job a lot simpler for the installer.
My family and I are interested in doing whatever we can to protect the environment. How can installing Isovalve™ help us help the environment?
In some situations it is not necessary to have a maximum water flow from tap fittings. Bathroom, kitchen and laundry taps are a good example of where maximum high pressure water flow is not generally necessary. When Isovalve™ is installed in these locations the water flow can be restricted at the time of installation or at any time in the future. The flow setting is easily increased or decreased by turning the IsoDome on the front of the Isovalve™ (it’s as simple as turning a tap) and is therefore easily set to meet individual requirements. In a typical house with a 300 litre mains pressure water system, savings of around 40,000 litres of hot and cold water could be achieved. In terms of the hot water saved this equates to a massive 68 hot water cylinders per year!
Are there any difficulties in installing Isovalve™ over the previous system?
Isovalve™ needs to be installed by a qualified trades-person – this is no different to a non-Isovalve™ system. Isovalve™ is very simple to install – the trades-person installing Isovalve™ needs to consider details of the finished wall linings and any cabinetry – but, apart from that, installation is very simple and quick.
Are Isovalve™s suitable for commercial as well as domestic installations?
Isovalve™s are ideal for fitting into commercial situations. The advantage they have is in terms of being able to adjust water flow, turn the water on and off at each fitting (meaning no disruption to other water users on the premises) and the ability to make them tamper-proof (public toilets etc) makes them the first choice for commercial building specifiers.
We are planning to renovate the kitchen in our old villa soon. Our plumber has suggested we use Isovalve™ but the rest of the house will still be the ‘old’ system. Can Isovalve™ be mixed in this way?
Absolutely – each Isovalve™ is a ‘stand-alone’ item. As a means of future proofing, and in order to take advantages of all the benefits that an Isovalve™ has to offer, we suggest that they are used to replace previous plumbing systems wherever possible.
My kitchen tap recently (literally) blew apart. There was water spraying all over the place. Luckily my oldest son was at home and knew how to turn the water off out at the street (we live down a long driveway). By the time the water was turned off the kitchen (and me) was soaked. We had to call a plumber out to make temporary repairs to the tap before we could turn the water back on. It was all a real hassle and ended up costing us a lot of money. Our plumber said that with an Isovalve™ installed I could have turned the water off immediately and wouldn’t have needed to call him out after hours. Is that true and if so where can I get these Isovalve™ s?
If your kitchen tap had been installed using an Isovalve™ fitting it would have been a very simple matter for you to turn the water off to the faulty tap using the IsoHandle on the front of the Isovalve™ . The water could have been left off to the faulty tap (leaving the water on to the rest of the fittings in the house) and you could have called your plumber when it suited (and had him fix the tap during normal working hours – saving the call-out fee!). Isovalve™ are available at all Plumbers Merchants.
I have a low pressure water system. Will Isovalve™ work on this type of system?
Isovalve™ works equally as well with both high and low pressure systems.
