A gate valve controls fluid flow by fully opening or closing the flow path by moving a gate up and down perpendicular to the flow path. This valve has a straight, unobstructed path, minimizing pressure loss and allowing simple cleaning. While slower than quarter-turn valves (e.g., ball and butterfly valves), gate valves are ideal for applications requiring infrequent operation.

Advantages

A gate valve's straight, unobstructed path leads to minimal pressure loss through the valve.

A gate valve takes up a small amount of space along the length of the piping.

These valves work well with larger-diameter piping due to their simple construction. They are relatively easy to scale to larger sizes.

A gate valve's simple design results in the valve being relatively durable.

Gate valves operate slowly, reducing the possibility of water hammer in the system.

Selection criteria

Consider the following criteria when selecting a gate valve:

Connection size: The connection size needs to match the size of the piping it connects to.

Max pressure at 20 °C/68 °F: Exceeding the valve's max operating pressure can damage it and reduce its lifetime.

Compression class: Compression class (e.g., PN10 or PN20) indicates the max pressure (bar) the valve can handle under normal operation.

Hand wheel height (mm): The hand wheel sticks out above the body of the gate valve. Know how this affects the valve's total height when in the closed and open positions.

Valve bore (mm): The internal diameter of the valve.