So after this years extreme cold, my outdoor spigot leaks.

[Nitrogen]

Yep.  I'm a dymmy and didn't take care of it properly, now it leaks pretty bad when I turn the outdoor spigot on.  Never needed to worry about it, as usually it only freezes one or two nights.  This year, we had almost a solid month and a half of freezing nights.  Oops.

How hard are these things to replace or repair?  I'm pretty handy, but I'm not even sure what kind of details to give to see how easy or how screwed I am...

[Jim147]

A picture might help.

jim

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

http://www.buyhardwaresupplies.com/?t=5&m=g1&itemNumber=4303780

sharkbite on it and never worry again

[KD5NRH]

Yep.  I'm a dymmy and didn't take care of it properly, now it leaks pretty bad when I turn the outdoor spigot on.  Never needed to worry about it, as usually it only freezes one or two nights.  This year, we had almost a solid month and a half of freezing nights.  Oops.

First, try tightening the packing nut just a bit.  That's free, and usually works.

It's the nut just below the handle.  If yours has the lower set of flats, it's best to hold them with another wrench to reduce the force on the pipe fittings.

[darius]

You might want to consider an insulating cap for the faucet next winter. They are usually made of of foam and you hook it over the faucet and tighten the wingnut.  Try to get one with a free moving wingnut as it is very annoying to tighten one with a stubborn wingnut. Sometimes the hook rods are metal and sometimes they are plastic.  I think the metal ones free wheel better.

[darius]

Here is what I am think of at amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/Frost-FC1-Outdoor-Faucet-Cover/dp/B001FG3C1C

They are inexpensive but not all that durable. But you should get several years out of one if you are careful when installing or removing it.  I even use them on my freeze resistant faucets.

[Tallpine]

If it's just dripping, then it might need a new washer.  Might be just a function of years of wear rather than frost.

If it's cracked, then you need a new faucet, and probably a plumber if changing a washer is a big deal. 

You should have one of those "frost free" outdoor faucets, where the actual shutoff is inside the house where it stays warm.  But you should never leave a hose attached in the winter, or else the water cannot drain out.

Our old house had manual "stop and waste" valves in the cellar for the outdoor faucets.  You had to close the inside valve, and open the waste valve and the outdoor valve before it gets too cold.

[Monkeyleg]

We leave our hose attached all winter long. We run the water out of it whenever we're finished using it, so it won't burst. It's laziness on my part, but it doesn't hurt anything as long as the hose isn't moved.

As for the spigot, if you need to replace it, turn off the water at the closest valve, then use a pipe wrench to unscrew the spigot from the pipe. Clean the threads, apply plumbers pipe thread compound, and screw on a new spigot.

[Declaration Day]

As for the spigot, if you need to replace it, turn off the water at the closest valve, then use a pipe wrench to unscrew the spigot from the pipe. Clean the threads, apply plumbers pipe thread compound, and screw on a new spigot.

This is what I did last year when mine leaked.  It cost $5 and only took a few minutes to change.

[Nitrogen]

ok, I'm hoping this is all it is.

There's some masonry i'll have to deal with, but it's done in such a way it should be minimal to deal with.  i'll take pix when I get home from the office.

[Tallpine]

Be careful you don't twist off the pipe somewhere inside... 

Plumbing parts never seem to come apart where you intend.

[Monkeyleg]

Be careful you don't twist off the pipe somewhere inside...

If that's a concern, have someone inside hold the pipe in place with a pipe wrench. If the spigot's been on a long time, you might want to try to get some penetrating oil on the threads a day or so before you try taking it off. Or you can heat it up with a butane torch.

[Waitone]

If the leak is out of the spigot discharge, the washer needs replacement.  If the leak is out the stem, the packing nut needs to be tightened  or replaced.

In any case never use one wrench.  Always use one to hold it so you don't stress the piping.

[Nitrogen]

Pix:




It's leaking behind the masonry whenever I turn it on.  I should be able to knock the masonry out and hopefully replace it.

I'm hoping I can turn this off from behind the kitchen sink.  This pipe is right on the opposite wall as the kitchen sink, at worst I'll go turn it off at the meter.

From what ya'll tell me, it should be pretty simple, but I always like to check with those that know before I dive into something.

[Mrs. Inor]

This reminds me of a funny.  Several years ago Inor and I decided to side the house.  In the removing of the old stuff (huge sheets of masonite or similar crap) one sheet of it slid down the side of the house and sheared off the outside spigot.  Water was shooting fifty feet out.  By the time I made it inside, Inor had come down the ladder, through the window, down the stairs and turned off the water from the inside.  The plumber had to use a wrench to turn the water back on.  Adrenaline I guess.  Now the funny part - when we were putting up the big board thingy for the new deck on the house, the scaffold we were standing on crumpled and the board fell and .... well ... the plumber laughed.

[sanglant]

would one of these help prevent it? still gotta loosen the hose though.









oh and, it put's the lotio..........................

[Jim147]

It leaks inside the wall when you turn the outside valve on?

Looks like you'll have to knock the brick out and see what you have.

A frost proof that froze ahead of the shutoff? Kinda strange post a picture when you find the leak so I stop trying to figure it out.

jim

[Monkeyleg]

I can't imagine a situation where the valve leaks in or behind the wall only when the valve is turned on. If there's a leak behind the wall, it's going to leak all the time. My guess is that the valve is leaking behind its flange somehow when you turn it on, and it looks like the water is coming from the masonry.

[Tallpine]

It's leaking behind the masonry whenever I turn it on.

What you have (or had)is a "frost free" spigot.  The handle turns a long rod which actually opens the valve back inside the house. 

You probably left the hose attached all winter and it didn't drain completely 

So you're going to need a new faucet ($30-40?) and the connection is back inside your house somewhere.  Hopefully, you can tear things apart inside to get to it, without too much reconstruction.

[sanglant]

you might be able to get to it through the crawl space and not have to rebuild the wall

[Nitrogen]

no crawl space, it's just a slab.

And no hoses connected over the winter at all. I'm HOPING that the attachment is just right inside where the masonry is, and that's where it's leaking.

[sanglant]

no hose hooked up, then i probably would have already rendered it into a pile of ruble.

[Nitrogen]

I usually don't get home till after dark, otherwise, yes, it'd be done by now :)

[CNYCacher]

Looks like a freeze-proof spigot.  The valve is actually about a foot behind the wall, connected to the handle with a rod running down the pipe.  The idea is when you turn it off, all the water runs out and can't freeze.

I spy a Y-connector with individual shutoffs, which you probably were using to control the water flow, trapping water inside the spigot during the winter.

Now you have a cracked pipe between the valve and the spout, which causes the leak when you run the water.

[Tallpine]

Looks like a freeze-proof spigot.

Thanks.  You explained it better than I did.