The Cyclegard, Aquagenie, Hydroservant, and Smart Tee are all very similar to the Cycle Stop Valve. The simple difference is that they have a tiny hole drilled through them for the bypass. The tiny hole will easily become clogged with debris or just grows closed like the holes in a shower head. So they screen all the water going through the valve to try and keep the tiny hole from clogging. It has never been a good idea to put any kind of screen before the pressure switch/pressure tank. When and not if, either the screen or the tiny hole become clogged, then the pump is completely deadheaded and melts down in just a few minutes. These type valves have been around for decades and the principle of operation is the same as a Cycle Stop Valve until they stop up and destroy your pump. This is why they have been around so long and still have not caught on.
The Cycle Stop Valve does not have a tiny hole to stop up. Therefore there is no need for a screen. The CSV has a simple patented half moon notch on the valve seat instead of a hole. There is no hole until the valve closes, then the half moon notch conforms into a bypass. When the valve opens, anything that could have clogged the bypass is easily flushed through. This eliminates any possibility of dead heading the pump. With larger valves the patented non-closing function of the Cycle Stop Valve eliminates valve hunting and water hammer that is prevalent in these other type valves which have fully closing valve seats.
Of these other valves only the Cyclegard and Smart Tee are still available on the market. Similarities in these other valves in design, advertisements, and instructions to the Cycle Stop Valve is flattering. It also proves that we are not completely alone in this, everybody else is pushing VFD world, and that the principle operation of a Cycle Stop Valve is sound. It is just that the non-closing bypass design of the Cycle Stop Valve is completely dependable and solves most of the problems associated with fully closing valves using drilled or external bypasses such as the Cyclegard and Smart Tee.
We have several articles on our web page that explains these things at Cyclestopvalves.com
http://www.cyclestopvalves.com/comparisons_12.htmlThe following link is a short video of one of the larger Cyclegard valves compared to a Cycle Stop Valve which is the non closing valve. Open with Windows Media Player
http://www.cyclestopvalves.com/video...gvalve-dsl.wmvSee the attached picture of a Cyclegard with it's screen completely clogged with debris. In this particular case, the debris you see is actually plastic from the pump impellers which have already been destroyed.
