Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - Printable Version
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Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - mycbarnes - 05-27-2020
I recently repaired the air water sequence valve in our Microphor LF210. The following are hints from my experience.
- When you order the air water sequence valve overhaul kit PN 95187 it will convert the older style black valve open top end cap to a closed end cap. This is done with replacement of the internal spool stem, the addition of an end plug and an end cap that does not have a hole in it. This eliminates a water leak failure point where the older style stem would protrude from the end and required an o ring to seal it. See yellow arrow in picture.
- The gray body valve is the newer part and much more robust than the older black valve. If converting from the black valve to gray you have to transfer the air fittings. Do not use teflon tape to seal the fittings, use plumbers putty. These fittings can be over tightened easily and crack the valve body. They do not need to be super tight, just snug.
- Both the black and gray valves have a top and bottom joint to the middle valve body. When you install the top portion of valve to middle portion it does not need to be super tight. Doing so will crack it. This connection does not seal water or air. It is just a mechanical bond between the two parts. If you are just taking apart the valve to clean and lube it I suggest you make two index marks on these threaded areas. Then upon reassembly, stop at the index marks.
- The bottom end cap to middle valve body is sealed with an o ring. ( see green arrow ). When you screw this joint together the gray valve body has to pass past this o-ring to seal. This creates a binding point during assembly. If you stop short of going all the way past this o-ring, the internal operating piston can travel farther than it is supposed to and the valve will not work correctly. If you tighten the bottom end cap enough to get past the o ring and bottom out the gray body you can then over tighten the bottom end cap and crack it. The answer is to first remove the sealing o-ring ( green arrow ) and then screw on the bottom end cap till the body bottoms to the end cap. Then make Sharpie index marks ( Red arrows ) noting the point where it's just at the end of its travel together in the joint. Then unscrew the joint, reinstall the o-ring and reassemble by tightening to the index marks only. It will help to lube the o-ring with silicone.
- The bottom air fittings going into the valve body can easily damage the valve if they are over tightened into the valve plastic. The threads can be pulled or the body plastic will crack.
- The internals of the valve should be lubed with silicone grease. This includes the o-rings, spool stem.
- The water inlet and spud outlet fittings can crack the plastic of the valve if over tightened. Use caution here as well.
RE: Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - jdkskyking - 09-19-2021
Thanks for the post, I’m trying to disassemble the valve without much luck. Not sure why it won’t come apart. Looks like it’s been updated to the new style. Possibly it’s not been apart in several years.
RE: Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - jdkskyking - 09-19-2021
After continued research, carefully studying diagrams and design… I unscrewed the top and pulled really hard. It came apart. I believe the lube was spared during the last rebuild.
RE: Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - mycbarnes - 09-19-2021
The lube makes a big difference. Glad you got it apart.
RE: Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - Richard - 09-20-2021
What are you using for lube? I have used silicone plumbers grease, but it seems a bit viscous to me
RE: Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - bestgenman - 09-20-2021
For what it is worth, I’m using Dow 111 silicone o-ring lube. Seems to work perfectly, I’m on five years this rebuild. It’s about $25.
RE: Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - Richard - 09-20-2021
Thx!
RE: Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - DK on the road - 08-31-2023
I'd like to add a bit about the Microphlor LF210 air/water assembly.
Things I've learned over the last few days while working on my unit;
If your toilet bowl is not refilling with much water, or it doesn't feel like the effluent is leaving the lower compartment below the flapper, your seals inside your air valve need to be relubed with silicon lube mentioned above in prior post. I have added some pictures below. In one picture, notice the clear tube that send water during the flush process (from the Vacuum breaker to the bowl). I found a small leak at the clear tube to air valve. I had already relubricated the air valve O rings, So I went to remove the clear tube. The fitting at either end is fragile in that it came out of the bowl, so I had to glue it back in place. use a 2 part epoxy here. The clear tubing has an offset that puts unneeded pressure on the fitting at either end. I used the old brittle clear tube as a model on the work bench and placed low heat on my new (5/8" ID 7/8" OD rated at 50 psi) and tried to give it the +/- 3" offset, then placed it in cool water. It kind of worked. Make note, there is a filter/regulator inside the plastic fitting that I re attached to the bowl that keeps +/- 50 psi in the clear tubing when flushing.
I also noted that the Vacuum breaker (the tall black cylinder on the left), was loose from the air valve (grey/black). Mine has a nipple that goes between the Air valve and the vacuum breaker. It turns out the nipple has threads going into the Air valve that is tighten into place by a internal 3/8" allen wrench. The other side of the nipple is just an O ring seal on the nipple, causing the Vacuum breaker to not stay in place unless the clear tube would restrict it from shooting off. Not a good design, Or a prior owner did not replace with the proper parts. Anyway, I threaded the nipple into the Air valve and used 2 part epoxy from O ring, up to the air valve. never allowing any to be inside or near where water will be.
I now had a positive connection at the bowl, a new Tube and connecting it to the Air/water valve and a good connection to the Air valve and vacuum breaker. But I still had a very slight water leak at the grey barbed fitting. I thought at first it wasn't tight enough, No, darn, it was the barbed fitting, it's partially glued into place, So I removed the whole assembly again and reattached the barbed fitting with PVC primer and glue.
I was able to do all this work while the porcelain bowl remained in place.
After about 4 R & R practice runs, It works perfectly. The front bowl fills as much as our rear bath bowl. BTW My wife really wanted a Bidet seat in our coach, so in June I installed a Bidet seat on the front toilet. I will do another blog on that.
RE: Microphor air water sequence valve repair hints - Richard - 09-01-2023
Dave,
Similar thinking. https://newellgurus.com/showthread.php?tid=5624&pid=46397&highlight=Microphor#pid46397