The PRV – Pressure Reducing Valve plays a vital role in controlling water pressure. It’s not only the modern high-rise buildings that require a PRV but PRVs are also installed in some areas where water comes down directly from high rise mountains and to the pipelines. To further understand the importance of PRVs or Pressure Reducing Valves, we have to take a look into what high water pressure can do?
A high amount of water pressure can damage pipelines, crack bathroom tiles, cause leakage in faucets and showers, cause wastage of water, and may lead to huge amounts of water bills. So, installing Pressure Reducing Valves with the pipelines is the safest option.
Assume that we are on the first floor of a building and the water tank is placed on the terrace without a PRV. What happens when we turn on the faucet? The water comes out with full pressure, because of the large amount of water that is stored on the top of the building and this high pressure can destroy the bathroom tiles. And when we go to the top floor of the same building and turn on the faucet, we will barely feel the water pressure, the pressure would not be enough for a bathroom shower to work.
So here we can see as we come down in the high-rise buildings, the water pressure increases on every floor. To solve this problem and distribute the water at a safe and usable pressure point we have to install the Pressure Reducing Valve just next to the water storage.
How Much Pressure is Adequate?
In residential and light commercial buildings, the ideal water pressure is 2-5 bars. If the water pressure is less than 2 bars, it will not be enough to use a shower and if it is more than 5 bars, it can lead to water wastage and can sometimes cause leakage in faucets and the joints of pipelines. Generally, the water distribution pumps or the municipal water lines run on 3-4 bars at ground level. In the water tanks of high-rise buildings, the water pressure depends on the water quantity. When the water tanks are full the water pressure is extremely high and it reduces when the water is at a lower point.
How to Manage Water Pressure?
As we read above, the water pressure in high-rise buildings varies floor by floor. So to get an ideal, useful, and equal water pressure on every floor, various PRVs will have to be installed on every floor. The installation depends on the building’s structure and how many tanks are on it.
Are you looking for Water Pressure Reducing Valves?
Aira Euro Automation is a prominent valve manufacturer and exporter in India. Aira’s engineers have designed PRVs to control water pressure, especially for high rise buildings.