Water has been seeping out of the sprinklers closest to the anti-siphon valve. Water seeps out of the sprinkler even when the anti-siphon valve is manually closed and not connected electronically. I opened up the anti-siphon valve to inspect the diaphragm, but there is no debris nor it was damaged. To be sure, I switched the diaphragm chamber of the two anti-siphon valves (a suspected leaky one and another good working one), but leak persists from the same sprinklers. I think the leak is from the (float?) rubber seal at the bottom of the stem closing the inlet valve. My anti-siphon is a Hardie (or Irritrol) model 311A series.1) Is my troubleshooting and logic correct? What other components could have contributed to the leak described? 2) At what scenario will water be flowing out of the anti-siphon cap?3) How can I determine if my anti-siphon valve has a vacuum breaker? What is a vacuum breaker good for?4)Which brand makes the most reliable anti-siphon valve?
Sprinkler Anti Siphon Valve Leaking
If the antisyphon valve is not leaking maybe you should focus attention on the main valve ( assuming it is a solenoid valve) to see if it closes completely. Another thing, if the irrigation zone is on an incline then the water in the system will drain to the lowest point. Sometimes it drains slowly causing the impression of a leaky feed valve.
I work in a printing plant,and our city mandates anti-siphon valves on all our commercial equipment,so I have a little knowledge about these.We used to call these pesky creatures Vacumn Breakers,but now they are called anti-siphon valves,but what's in a name-they both are supposed to accomplish the same thing.Should your water pressure drop,due to a broken main or largefire,these devices are supposed to prevent contaminated water,like the contents of the Agfa Encomatic plate processor rinse tank,or your irrigation pipes,from being pulled back into your plumbing ,and then out your faucets when pressure is restored ,which could make everybody sicker than pooches. The way these work on industrial models is a little more complicated,but the principle is the same,for water to flow through the system,a certain pressure must be maintained.Our older models had a spring and diaphram arragement,the water pressure pushed the diaphram against a seal seat,with a spring behind it.As long as the pressure in the valve was greater than the spring,water would flow through the vave,but when the pressure ceased,the spring closed the diaphram,which in turn opened a vent that allowed the water to drain hence,vacumn breaker.These had to be at a point above the turn-offs,by the way,and when they malfunctioned,due to debris or rusted springs,they could either fail,and stay open,or fail,and water wouldcome gushing out the cap. The conditions you desribe sounds like a low pressure situation,where there is not enough pressure to flow through the anti-siphon.Is your supply line kinked or crushed?
