So everyone is intrigued with the frost proof sillcock, WHY?  I know,I know, I’m just a grumpy old time plumber who’s not open to the new modern way of doing things. That’s somewhat true, but the fact still remains if these frost proof valves are not installed correctly, you still run the risk of  BURST water line due to a FREEZE UP. How? Well, the bottom line is this. If you don’t pitch them downward away from the water source, the water will remain inside the cavity and at the first sub-freezing temperatures will cause them to fail! I’ve been installing outside hose lines longer than I care to remember and  I’ve been doing it successfully without using expensive frost proof sill-cocks. I guess there is a place for them to be used in commercial applications,but for the average homeowner, I don’t think you need them.

The key to installing an outside hose line is this, Install a good quality ball type shut-off valve inside the house just before the water line exits the home and  pitch them downward away from the waters source. When winter time rolls around, shut off the ball valve and open the outside faucet to drain out the remaining water inside the line. Pretty simple! But wait, what if the line is pitched backward towards the water source? It happens all the time here in New York City and when it does I simply install another hose bib inside the home to drain the water out of the line. Again when winter time rolls around I shut off the inside ball valve and open both the inside and out hose bib’s ensuring there is no more water sitting in the line.

An aid in helping the water drain successfully out of the line is to use a shut-off valve with a side inlet air vent port which will relieve any vacuum. I personally don’t use them, but they are available should you want them. The key to successfully preventing an outside hose line from an annual freeze up is to  shut them off in the first place! I get called in every year from the same customers who simply forgot to shut off the water supply to their outside hose lines and I even equip them with BIG ORANGE GLOW TAGS with the words SHUT IN WINTER! Go figure! 

I was called in this past week because a customer  had a leak coming thru his foundation wall from his frost proof sillcock. He didn’t shut off the inside water supply valve because he thought he was protected with his fancy frost-proof valve. What he didn’t realize was that the washer inside the valve failed and the entire valve was back pitched which allowed water to fill the valve cavity. Upon the first freezing temperatures, the valve body split open leaking water through the foundation wall into his basement.

Check out the video where I show you the exact valve I pulled out of his house and believe it or not he wanted an exact replacement! I reminded him he would be well advised to shut-off the inside water supply valve to prevent this from happening again. By the way, I tagged the valve, you think he’ll read it?  Anyway thanks as always for stopping by and  if you enjoy my videos please give me a thumbs up and subscribe to my channel. Regards, HAPPY PLUMBING. Bob