Garden Hose Valve

This ball valve can be used to reduce flow a little or shut it completely. It is fully printable and has a  ¾" tread on both sides, so you can use it with a lot of other hose connectors you might already have at home.

Printing:
Print all parts in the given orientation. Use 0.15mm layer hight for the Body, Key and the BallValve part. All other as you want. No Support needed. Make sure to set the seam position to “random” in order to prevent leaking. The gasket parts need to be printet out of TPU. Used A98 for mine and it works just fine.

Assembly:
See step by step guide in the pictures down below.
You can add some petrol jelly to the gasket parts but this is not mandatory though.
Note: Make sure the gaskets are inserted with the correct orientation, otherwise they wont work. Refer to the cut away picture if in doubt

1.Put the “GasketTop” on the “BallValve”

Note: The groove has to face towards the ball, the flat side has to face towards the Body

2.Insert the “BallValve” in the “Body”

3.Insert one of the “Insert_x2” parts on top of the “BallValve”
Note: If the “Insert_x2” part wont settle right in the “Body” part, it is most likely because of the “gasketTop” part is still slightly in the way. Make sure it is pushed all the way up and seated right.

4.Insert the “GasketSide_x2”

5.Put the O-Ring on the hose connector and put it in the Body.

6.Repeat step 1. to 5. on the other side. Also insert the “Key” in the “BallValve”

7.Put the “Handle” on top and secure it with the “Clamp”. Done :)

Due to the ¾" thread, this valve also works with other common hose connectors

If you are still wondering how this printed gaskets are able to seal, its because they are shaped in such a way that the water pressure helps to push them in place. Smal disclaimer here. it is likely that your print might leak along the threads or even between the layers. I had some test prints which leaked in the most unusual places because of different print settings and loose hose connectors. The TPU hardness and also your tolerances are going to influence the valve’s performance too. You might have to do some testing