I'm in the process of adding two taps to the garden. Both involve longish runs of standard 1/2" black plastic (?) pipe which will be surface laid in a ditch and will terminate in brass garden taps being fed vertically.

Is there a risk of frost damage to any of this? Would I be wise to install a bleed valve in the lowest section?

fred Wrote in message:
I'm in the process of adding two taps to the garden. Both involve longish runs of standard 1/2" black plastic (?) pipe which will be surface laid in a ditch and will terminate in brass garden taps being fed vertically.

Is there a risk of frost damage to any of this? Would I be wise to install a bleed valve in the lowest section?



I'd be considering a means of isolating the lot so that the end
taps can be left open all winter, a) to drain what will & b) to
allow somewhere for icy expansion to go.
Spose if the pipes run uphill from the feed, some other means
-disconnection, draincock, another tap? would be advisable to
drain the pipes down.

I had an issue with a garden tap where the double check valve got
iced & didn't recover. Simple enough to remove the check
mechanism & (if required) do the double check bit indoors at the
other end of the pipe....
--
Jim K


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fred wrote:
I'm in the process of adding two taps to the garden. Both involve longish
runs of standard 1/2" black plastic (?) pipe which will be surface laid
in a ditch and will terminate in brass garden taps being fed vertically.


Is there a risk of frost damage to any of this? Would I be wise to install
a bleed valve in the lowest section?

We have loads of blue and black MDPE pipe running around our 9 acres
and most is very near the surface (or even on the surface). It's
survived frost for several years as have the pretty standard brass
taps on the ends.

--
Chris Green
·

On 18/07/2017 10:14, fred wrote:

I'm in the process of adding two taps to the garden. Both involve
longish runs of standard 1/2" black plastic (?) pipe which will be
surface laid in a ditch and will terminate in brass garden taps being
fed vertically.

Is there a risk of frost damage to any of this? Would I be wise to
install a bleed valve in the lowest section?

I have a tap in the garage which because the exterior pipe is actually
higher than it doubles as a drain for the outside greenhouse pipe.

Insulate the parts exposed to the air in winter and you might well get
away with it in milder regions.
It is only likely to be a big problem in a year when temperatures fall
to -10C and stay there.

I'd have a provision for draining down the outside pipes. YMMV
(or at the very least isolating them from supply and leaving the garden
tap open so that you cannot get freezing causing huge pressure build up)

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On Tuesday, July 18, 2017 at 11:13:31 AM UTC+1, Martin Brown wrote:
On 18/07/2017 10:14, fred wrote:

I'm in the process of adding two taps to the garden. Both involve
longish runs of standard 1/2" black plastic (?) pipe which will be
surface laid in a ditch and will terminate in brass garden taps being
fed vertically.

Is there a risk of frost damage to any of this? Would I be wise to
install a bleed valve in the lowest section?

I have a tap in the garage which because the exterior pipe is actually
higher than it doubles as a drain for the outside greenhouse pipe.

Insulate the parts exposed to the air in winter and you might well get
away with it in milder regions.
It is only likely to be a big problem in a year when temperatures fall
to -10C and stay there.

I'd have a provision for draining down the outside pipes. YMMV
(or at the very least isolating them from supply and leaving the garden
tap open so that you cannot get freezing causing huge pressure build up)

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

The system is supplied from a storage tank pressurised by a pump. Having had two pumps burst by frost the pump is turned off at the beginning of winter and fully drained down. It live in its own little house fixed to the back wall of the garage. Mr Squirrel used it for storage one year and left his detritus of nut shells after him. The following year either he, or one of his buddys, had a go at chewing the insulation off the electricity supply cable

Most of those around here have a tap inside the house to isolate the outside
taps during the colder months. Leave the garden taps open and let them drain
when its cold.
Brian

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"fred" wrote in message
...
I'm in the process of adding two taps to the garden. Both involve longish
runs of standard 1/2" black plastic (?) pipe which will be surface laid in
a ditch and will terminate in brass garden taps being fed vertically.

Is there a risk of frost damage to any of this? Would I be wise to install
a bleed valve in the lowest section?

In message , jim
writes
fred Wrote in message:

Is there a risk of frost damage to any of this? Would I be wise to
install a bleed valve in the lowest section?

I'd be considering a means of isolating the lot so that the end
taps can be left open all winter, a) to drain what will & b) to
allow somewhere for icy expansion to go.

+1. We are in Aberdeenshire, where winter temps can plummet, and the
above works well for us. Bleed valve sounds a little OTT - I just turn
off the supply indoors, and open the garden tap. System works well, and
was installed long before we arrived 15 years ago.

--
Graeme

On Tuesday, July 18, 2017 at 7:01:20 PM UTC+1, Brian Gaff wrote:
Most of those around here have a tap inside the house to isolate the outside
taps during the colder months. Leave the garden taps open and let them drain
when its cold.
Brian

--
----- -
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please!
"fred" wrote in message
...
I'm in the process of adding two taps to the garden. Both involve longish
runs of standard 1/2" black plastic (?) pipe which will be surface laid in
a ditch and will terminate in brass garden taps being fed vertically.

Is there a risk of frost damage to any of this? Would I be wise to install
a bleed valve in the lowest section?


So the consensus is forget the bleed/drain valve and just let the taps run dry.

Fingers crossed for the next big frost

Thanks to all who contributed

In message , fred
writes

So the consensus is forget the bleed/drain valve and just let the taps run dry.

Fingers crossed for the next big frost

We have noted temps here down to -15, but the pipe was fine, with the
inside tap off and the outside tap open. Four radiators indoors froze,
but that is another story.
--
Graeme