Pro Handyman Blog

If you have a leaking sprinkler valve, you may be able to pull off a handyman quick fix, if the leak is in the right spot. A sprinkler valve is made up of two halves, a top and a bottom. If the damage to the valve, usually a small crack, is in the bottom half of the valve, you will have to cut out the valve and replace it. If the damage is in the upper half, you can buy an identical valve and just replace the upper half of the valve. The benefit with this method is that you don’t have to cut out the valve and splice a new one in. This saves a lot of aggravation because working in a sprinkler box, a foot below ground, is very tight quarters which sometimes leads to removing all of the valves just for access.

By being able to replace just the upper half you can gain access without cutting out the valve.

Turn off the water to the sprinkler system and loosen the bleed screw to remove the water pressure. Then remove the screws that hold the top half to the lower half. You will also need to remove the wire nuts that hold the sprinkler valve wires to the timer wires. Pull off the top with the rubber diaphragm and replace the parts from the new valve top onto the old valve bottom. Tighten the screws with uniform pressure and then reattach the wires back together. Turn the water back on and check for leaks, then run through the timer to make sure everything functions.