Temperature went up to the 60's and plants needed water. Exterior wall hose bib (Arrowhead frost proof type) was opened with the 4 way splitter closed. I could hear water flowing. What's going on? Soon I saw water coming out of the weep holes.
I went inside and opened the drywall. A connector was sitting behind a 2x4 cross.
I put fingers around the connector but the connector and the fiberglass insulation were dry. Just no sign of wetness from this end.
I suppose the leak is somewhere on the long pipe of this frost free faucet and the remedy is to replace the whole faucet, not just the stem. As far as I could tell, the connection is threaded 3/4". I could not see individual threads but definitely not sweated. Am I in the right path? Thank you.
Sounds like it froze and split. You shouldn't leave hoses or splitters connected to a hose bib in freezing weather, since they hold water in the lines and completely defeat the purpose of having a frost free hose bib.
Sounds like it froze and split. You shouldn't leave hoses or splitters connected to a hose bib in freezing weather, since they hold water in the lines and completely defeat the purpose of having a frost free hose bib.
Repair update:
The faucet was 1/2" threaded indeed and failed exactly as you expected. The copper tubing ruptured lengthwise. Unfortunately I could not complete the repair. The same brand 4" faucet is about 1/2" too short. Next size is 6". Home Depot does not have an extension, only female and male fittings separately. If I solder them together, the faucet would stick out 1"+. Wife said no. I have no choice but to replace the ruptured tubing with the right length 3/4" copper. When I finally figured this out, it became dark.
Lesson learned: I should have hired a professional. The drywall didn't need to be cut open, since the pro would know the failure point and the right repair method. This forum is to blame in part, because without this forum I would have no one to ask and hired a professional 😁
I'm not following. How could you make any repair without opening the wall ?
The frost free bib was either screwed onto a 1/2" copper adapter fitting or was soldered directly to the pipe.
I watched a youtube posted by a pro. He shined a flashlight from the exterior and said it was threaded. I thought it would be that easy for a pro to tell the joining method.
Yes.... that would tell you if the valve was screwed into a fitting. However, spinning the valve off.... while hoping not to cause any damage and screwing the new one and hoping it's tight enough with no leaks is not like a pro.
Thank you PJmax. It is good to know I did the right thing (to cut open a dry wall). The hose bib was threaded into a female wall mount fastened to 2x4. The opening helped to visually verify no leak after repair.
Had to remove 1978 shower arm. Was leary but did it anyway, and broke it off with half of the old arm threads still in pipe. Pics attached.
Shower is newly restored ceramic. Don’t want to damage it. Shower arm plumbing is in exterior wall. Wall is brick veneer. Need to figure out how to remove the broken off piece. Have sprayed it with PB penetrant for now.
Any help will be appreciated.
[img]https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.doityourselft.com-vbulletin/2000x1504/shower_arm_c11a5ea4bad3acb2bb9a75f13885e97d98411a18.jpg[/img]
[i]Shower Arm [/i]
[img]https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.doityourselft.com-vbulletin/2000x1504/broke_piece_in_pipe_b3a2316a848849097627ece9096cc7c248e71465.jpg[/img]
[i]Broke in Pipe[/i]
Finally after 5 Days without Electricity (Eastern Ontario) It seems that those 5 days the Pump sat idle things need to be Tweaked and the Holding Tank may have tobe Replaced ?? The ON / OFF setting on the Pump may need some adjusting , pump seems to take longer to kick in ?? The Pump was replaced 12 yrs ago and the Holding Tank was the original here when we moved in Labor Day weekend 2007.. The Holding Tank is a Bell shaped tank that stands about 3' , I believe it has a Bladder in it.. Curious would it have reached it's Usefulness ?? Every thing was running fine until the Power was out for 5 days.. As a side Note it took a Day for the water to come clear , we have a HD Water Softener with a Resin Applicator .. Unit uses Rust Remover Salt only.. There is a UV Light ahead of the Softener and we have a RO unit with separate tap off the Kitchen Cold Water supply.. Cheers Thanks , Any thoughts Appreciated..
01-29-22, 08:51 PM
