Leaking outdoor frost free faucet

1/6/2018 at 4:12:29 PM

Not a difficult fix just make sure you back wrench the body of the frost free hose bib and part of the stem may be in the back of the body

1/6/2018 at 4:55:51 PM

Hi. If the leak isn't too bad, I would advise you to wait until it warms up a bit. Monday is looking good. I have seen these fail due to freezing. What happens is water does not drain out. Either because the hose is left attached or there is water trapped at the back of the unit due to down slope into the house. The water freezes and damages the stem and sometimes the body. Sometimes, the body cracks. If you are lucky you can replace the stem and it will be good to go. If the body expanded due to freezing, you probably won't be able to fix it by replacing the stem. If you have access to the pipe running to the faucet, I would suggest adding a shut off inside. That way you can isolate the faucet and not have to shut off the water to rest of the house if the repair doesn't go as planned. If you have pex pipe, adding a shut off would be relatively easy.

Good luck!

Steve.

1/6/2018 at 5:46:45 PM

First off ... your in Markham ON ??? I'm in BC .. so a little out of my service area ... BUT ... was the faucet leaking before the cold snap??? If yes .. then probably flat washer at the end of the stem needs replacement ... a lot of times the brass screw may not come out .. If u can find the EXACT make and length of FF faucet then u can change complete cartridge... and yes ... Most FF faucets do not have a shutoff.. so main water shutoff before working on it ... If it was after one of the recent cols snaps and it started leaking the back end may have frozen and created the leak because the seat is deformed now .. so .. complete FF faucet will need replacement ...make sure the shutoff portion is WELL within the heated portion of the wall ... Can u see the back side of the FF faucet ?? Is it bulging ?? A lot of times drywall will need to be opened to fix ...

1/6/2018 at 10:12:35 PM

Thanks for all the responses!

There was a little leaking before the cold snap and the hose was still attached but I think i made it worse by tightening it too hard.

I'm really hoping it's just the cartridge and will give it a go when it does warm up a bit next week. For some reason the previous owner installed a hard to find make that only seems readily available in the US. So once i determine the right cartridge, I'll still need to wait for one to ship.

The pipes are all buried behind drywall in the house so it will be a huge pain if it's a complete replacement.

Another worry now is the ice build up by the foundation, i guess I'll know come spring.

1/7/2018 at 10:47:34 PM

Sad a plumber that doesn't think ahead for wear and tear service. You need to get a shut off valve installed depending on how much ice is forming from a slight drip. most of these frost free units will not create a burst pipe due to freezing, but We don't think you want to find out. If possible have the plumber do work on the inside installing a shut off and in the spring replace the cartridge.