Water Stop Valves

[raybush]

May need to change my kitchen taps which I've got on two stop cock valves ,both valves are quite old and I may have a job turning them off .
I have a mains cold water shut off valve on my drive which i'm hoping will shut the cold supply off ,but the last time I used that it still let a dribble of water through .The two valves under the sink are quite old and will be very stiff to turn (if at all)and normally with them and there age even if I can get them to turn off the lightly hood is that once turned back on they will leak from the very old packing gland .I'm normally quite handy with a bit of basic plumbing ,but don't want to come a cropper with this job...……...so any advice would be great.

Thanks

[EDDIE51]

Your stop valves sound like a disaster waiting to happen. I would get a qualified plumber in to change all the stop cocks and the kitchen taps.
Then you know it will be an easy DIY job next time. You will get a bill but will save the possibility of an expensive flood ( which would not be covered under your household insurance, as it would be classed as your own fault)

[DC_FC]

Yes get a plumber in, even if its just to ask for an opinion.

[Gizmonster]

Sorry I can't really offer any advice on the job in question, but I would advise you to change the stop cock valves; or at least put a separate one in that turns all the supply off, without having to go outside.
When we moved into our house, over 12 years ago, the main stop cock valve was part of a lead pipe and had virtually seized. We could still turn the water off by turning it off outside - but it was well worth the cost of getting a plumber in to fit a new stop cock valve under the sink.
Another thing as well - we've just had our kitchen sink and taps replaced last week and the guy that did the job explained that he'd fitted separate valves to each tap, so we could isolate them if we needed to replace a tap (they're the ones where you just turn it with a screwdriver to turn on/off), so these might be an option??

[diddlydo]

For goodness sake call a plumber. Seized old joints/stop taps are a complete nightmare. I speak from bitter experience of my OH's DIY efforts.

[johnk]

Have you thought of having a solenoid valve fitted. It's an electrically operated valve so you switch the valve on or off by a switch on the wall?

[waterboatman]

In emergency a squirt of WD40 or similar will help. But as has been said, you really need a qualified plumber to replace valves and taps. Taps with ceramic seals are by far the best.

[Arrods]

Just be aware that, in my experience, even the isolation valves that you turn off with a slotted screwdriver can fail to do their job properly over time, being sometimes difficult to turn off fully. There are lever type valves - used for gas or water - that seem to be more robust, but the plumber will know best.