New vacuum breaker on hose bibb does NOT drip...
#1
03-02-17, 02:09 PM
New vacuum breaker on hose bibb does NOT drip...
Hi,
I had a vacuum breaker on a hose bibb that literally *sprayed* water several feet out around the spigot when the water was turned off and the hose drained (with a trigger sprayer at the end).
The other hose bibbs around the house all have VBs on them that drip profusely (as the should) when the water is turned off and the hose is drained, but the water simply falls directly to the ground rather than spraying outward.
I bought a new VB and installed it, but this time nothing happened when I turned off the water and drained the hose. Went to a different big box store and bought another one but it turned out to be the same brand/model. I installed it anyway and the same thing happened -- nothing. I doesn't drip one drop of water when the supply is turned off and the hose is drained.
Since two of them did this I'm thinking they can't both be defective, but every other hose bibb VB I've installed in the past drips when the water is turned off, and when I put the old one back on, it still sprays water when the water is turned off and the hose drained, just like it did before.
Are these new ones really defective or has something changed such that they don't drip the water like the old ones?
Thanks for any insight anyone can provide. I want to make sure my home's water supply is protected, especially when I've got a hose-end sprayer with yard chemicals attached!
I had a vacuum breaker on a hose bibb that literally *sprayed* water several feet out around the spigot when the water was turned off and the hose drained (with a trigger sprayer at the end).
The other hose bibbs around the house all have VBs on them that drip profusely (as the should) when the water is turned off and the hose is drained, but the water simply falls directly to the ground rather than spraying outward.
I bought a new VB and installed it, but this time nothing happened when I turned off the water and drained the hose. Went to a different big box store and bought another one but it turned out to be the same brand/model. I installed it anyway and the same thing happened -- nothing. I doesn't drip one drop of water when the supply is turned off and the hose is drained.
Since two of them did this I'm thinking they can't both be defective, but every other hose bibb VB I've installed in the past drips when the water is turned off, and when I put the old one back on, it still sprays water when the water is turned off and the hose drained, just like it did before.
Are these new ones really defective or has something changed such that they don't drip the water like the old ones?
Thanks for any insight anyone can provide. I want to make sure my home's water supply is protected, especially when I've got a hose-end sprayer with yard chemicals attached!
#2
03-02-17, 02:26 PM
Forum Topic Moderator
Vacuum breaker should not drip. One's that are dripping most likely need seal replaced.Only way they might drip is if you have pressure off hose and it is higher than bib.
#3
03-03-17, 11:25 AM
That's usually the case. I'm using a hose end sprayer/nozzle and while spraying, no dripping at the VB. I turn off the hose and release the pressure at the sprayer/nozzle by holding it open. At that point I'm probably holding it above the hose bibb in my hand. Then they normally drip. Also, as I coil the hose back on the hose holder (again, water is still off), they drip. Hose holder is slightly above the hose bibb. Every VB I've had on three different houses in the past 10 years have worked this way except the new one, which never dripped regardless of pressure on/off hose or where the hose was held.
#4
03-07-17, 10:20 AM
I agree, I've always seen vacuum breakers leak/spray when the faucet is turned off and the hose has pressure built up. Maybe the newer (cheaper) ones are just acting as a backflow valve? Or maybe they are just cheap and don't work.
#5
03-07-17, 12:06 PM
Super Moderator
SW, the one I put on the house here, from HD, did exactly as you describe. There's a series of holes all around the circumference and that's where it sprayed from. Acted nothing like ones I've had in the past that would just dribble a little.
I'm going to try a couple of real hardware stores and maybe a plumbing supply. Or I may just leave it off, heck it's a rental and I put it on to begin with. I have a hose splitter on now so I can fill buckets and such and if I use the hose, I turn the open side off, use the hose, turn the bibb off, open the other side, then drain the hose through the open side and close it when I'm done coiling the hose.
I'm going to try a couple of real hardware stores and maybe a plumbing supply. Or I may just leave it off, heck it's a rental and I put it on to begin with. I have a hose splitter on now so I can fill buckets and such and if I use the hose, I turn the open side off, use the hose, turn the bibb off, open the other side, then drain the hose through the open side and close it when I'm done coiling the hose.
