050325 1427 - Patch posted:

I screwed up and left the hose connected to my "freeze-less" outdoor faucet.
Now when I try to use it water shoots out of the fixture. The shut-off valve
still works, so the problem is in the faucet. Is there a repair kit for
these things, or do you need to replace the entire unit? I can see where it
connects to the copper line in the basement. I can't tell if it will just
unscrew or need to be un-soldered. I've looked for a web site that deals
with repair\replacing them, but I've had no luck in finding one. I live out
in the country & getting a plumber out would be very expensive. Does anyone
know of a web site I might visit?



I ran an outside faucet in an old house of mine once and used 3/4" copper
and 2 gate valves, one inside, and one outside. In the winter I closed the
inside valve and opened the outside valve. In the summer I closed the
outside valve and opened the inside valve. Had no problems with freezing or
cracked valves. On the outside valve I soldered a 90 degree fitting so I
could hang a pail on it and pour water into the bucket without having to
hold it. The whole thing worked really well.