A four-way valve controls fluid flow in different directions using a single valve. It can have one inlet and three outlet ports or two inlet and outlet ports. They can be manually operated or powered by air, hydraulic fluid or electricity. They are used in various applications such as industrial controls, air conditioning systems, and swimming pools.
A four-way valve uses a series of ports to control the flow of fluids in different directions using a single valve. The design can have a single inlet port with three outlet ports or two inlet and outlet ports to control flow from two different sources. These valves can be manually operated or powered by air, hydraulic fluid or electricity.
A one port four-way valve contains an inlet connection for fluid to enter the valve. Three outlet ports can be connected to waste piping for various storage tanks or to control rams on hydraulically operated equipment. The valve may have a manual control arm or a powered motor or actuator to move the valve assembly. The internal valve ports open and close, sending fluid in the desired direction.
Double port four-way valves are used when two fluid flows need to be controlled by one valve. The internal design can allow two fluids to move at the same time, or one fluid stream can be opened and the other closed. The control of a two-way valve can be manual or motorized, in the same way as for one-way valves.
There is a wide range of possible applications for a four-way valve. Industrial controls use them to open and close other valves to power chemical processes. They can be used to control the flow of steam to heat equipment or buildings. A four-way hydraulic valve could control construction equipment such as backhoes or cranes by opening, closing or moving parts of the equipment with hydraulic rams.
Air conditioning systems use a four-way valve for heat pump applications. A heat pump extracts heat from outside and releases it inside a building. In heating mode, the valve reverses the flow of refrigerant through the indoor and outdoor coils. The exhaust gas from the compressor is sent to the interior coil and the heat is extracted to warm the interior. Switching the thermostat to cool will move the valve and coolant will flow in the direction needed to cool the interior.
Swimming pools may contain four-way valves to control the flow of water for filtering, draining and backwashing. The pool pump discharge normally flows through the pool filter to clean the water. Changing the four-way valve to the drain position may allow for lowering the pool level or draining the pool. A third position on the valve will send water in the reverse direction through the filter to backwash the filter material. Four-way valves can reduce the cost and complexity of a pool system by allowing a single pump to provide multiple functions.
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