Disassembling the BREWHA Sanitary Ball Valve

Disassembling a valve to remove any sediment that is trapped inside is essential sanitary technique for any brewery.

The BREWHA Sanitary Valve is the simplest and easiest valve you’ll ever disassemble. Aside from the very first time (when a wrench may be needed to loosen the nut on the handle) no tools other than your fingers are required to disassemble and reassemble the valve. Disassembly, cleaning and reassembly can all happen inside a minute.

To disassemble and reassemble the valve, follow these simple steps:

1. The only tool you’ll ever need is a small wrench to loosen the factory tightened nut on the valve stem.
	2. If needed, loosen the nut with a wrench.
3. Loosen the nut with your fingers. (From here on, when loosening or tightening this nut, only finger-tightening is necessary.)
	4. Remove the nut from the valve stem.
5. If necessary, wiggle the handle up and down until it can come off. (Sometimes the factory sets it tight so tap it on the underside of the handle nearest the valve stem; once loosened, it will come of easily in the future.)
	6. Remove the handle.
7. Loosen the nut on the clamp.
	8. Open the bottom half of the clamp.
9. Lift the clamp off of the valve.
	10. Once the clamp is removed, the valve opens completely up.
11. Remove the stem from the ball by angling the stem slightly downward.
	12. Remove the gasket from stem by gently wiggling it out.
13. And that is it! The first time can be a little tricky but after a time or two it becomes very simple and quick. Reassemble the valve with the above instructions in reverse order. It is easiest to build the valve, with one face sitting flat on a counter and build the valve up from there. Ensure the gaskets are seated properly when reassembling. It can be helpful to gently wiggle the valve handle a little as it is tightening to help the ball seat properly and ensure the wing nut and the cap nut on the hinge side are tightened approximately equal so that the gap between the two clamp halves is roughly the same.