How Many Isolation Valves Are Enough?

By Tom Walski, Ph.D., Bentley Systems

Isolation valves are essential components of water distribution systems. Without them, repairing a pipe break or performing other maintenance would require shutting down the entire water distribution system or resorting to some heroic work on pressurized pipes.

But how many isolation valves are needed? They are not inexpensive, and they require occasional maintenance. Installing too many valves can be a waste of money, while too few valves result in an unreliable system with frequent service interruptions. Ideally isolation valves in a distribution system would enable a shutdown to be isolated to a single city block.