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My next-door neighbor’s outdoor faucet dripped all summer. He kept saying he’d fix it but never did. By the time winter hit, it had wasted enough water to fill a swimming pool. Then it froze, burst, and flooded his crawl space. That small drip turned into a $2000 problem real quick.
Outdoor faucets, also called hose bibs or spigots, seem simple but they take a beating. Constant exposure to weather, getting yanked on when you disconnect hoses, freezing in winter. They need attention.
They’re outside dealing with sun, rain, and temperature swings. The rubber parts dry out and crack. Metal corrodes. Minerals from our hard water build up inside.
Most damage comes from freezing, though. When water freezes, it expands, and that expansion can split brass fittings like they’re made of paper.
Another issue is people leaving hoses connected in winter. The hose traps water in the faucet so it can’t drain properly. That trapped water freezes and boom, burst faucet.
Regular hose bibs have the valve right at the faucet. When you shut it off, water sits in the pipe ready to freeze.
Frost-free faucets, also called freeze-proof, have the valve way back inside your house where it’s warm. When you turn it off, the pipe drains automatically. These are way better for our climate.
If you’ve got regular hose bibs, consider upgrading to frost-free. Saves a lot of headaches.
Simple repairs like replacing washers or tightening packing nuts are cheap and quick. We can usually do those for under $100.
If the faucet is old, corroded, or has a damaged seat, replacement makes more sense. Why put new parts in a worn-out faucet that’ll just fail again soon?
Frost-free faucets cost more than regular ones but they’re worth it. Installation takes longer because we have to access the pipe inside the wall, but it’s good insurance against freeze damage.
Every fall, you should:
Disconnect all hoses from outdoor faucets. Every single one.
Shut off interior shutoff valves if you have them.
Open the outdoor faucet to let water drain out.
If you have frost-free faucets, they’ll drain themselves once you disconnect the hose.
It takes five minutes and prevents most freeze damage, but people don’t do it.
If your outdoor faucet freezes and bursts, shut off water to that faucet immediately. Usually, there’s a shutoff valve inside the house on the line feeding it.
Even if you shut it off, when things thaw, the pipe might leak inside your wall. This causes hidden water damage that turns into mold problems.
Call us as soon as you notice a problem. Freeze damage gets worse as it thaws.
Outdoor faucets should slope slightly downward so they drain properly. A lot of DIY installations are level or even tilted up, which traps water.
They need backing inside the wall so they’re supported. A faucet flopping around will eventually crack the pipe.
The height matters too. Too low and you can’t fit a bucket under it. Too high and it’s awkward to use.
If your house only has one outdoor faucet, consider adding more. Nothing worse than dragging 200 feet of hose around your house.
We can tap into existing lines and add faucets pretty easily in most cases. Especially useful if you’ve got a big yard or garden areas far from the current faucet.
Some outdoor faucets have vacuum breakers on top. These prevent backflow, basically keeping outside water from getting sucked back into your house supply.
They’re required by code in many areas now. They sometimes develop leaks and need replacement. Easy fix, usually.
Check your outdoor faucets at the start of each summer. Turn them on full and look for leaks. If there’s a drip or leak, fix it before it gets worse.
Clean out any debris around the faucet. Dirt and leaves can work their way inside when you disconnect hoses.
If flow seems weak, unscrew the aerator, if it has one, and clean out sediment.
The biggest mistake people make is cranking down too hard when shutting off outdoor faucets. This damages the seat and washer. Just turn until the water stops, you don’t need to muscle it.
Same with hoses, don’t gorilla grip them onto the faucet. Hand tight is plenty.
If your outdoor faucet won’t shut off, try tightening the packing nut, the big nut right behind the handle. Sometimes that’s loose and preventing full closure.
If that doesn’t work, shut off the water supply and call us. Trying to force it will just break something.
Washer replacement and minor repairs typically run $75 to $150. Replacing the whole faucet usually costs $150 to $300, depending on type and location. Frost-free faucets cost more but prevent future problems.
If we have to repair freeze damage to pipes inside walls, that gets pricey fast. Prevention is definitely cheaper.
Having outdoor faucet problems? Visit My Local Plumber at http://www.mylocalplumber.net and get them repaired before small issues turn into big ones.
