Losing my battle with the hose bib...

[Drew]

Hey Guys, I'm trying to turn the water ON to my front hose bib, and am fighting a losing battle.

Our house has two hose bib petcocks, one for the front and one for the rear of the house. I've had no problems turning the water on to the rear bib. The rear petcock is on the 2nd floor and runs downward to the bib itself.

The front bib is in the basement, and runs upward to the bib.

Here is my procedure:

1. Open outside hose bib all the way
2. Make sure petcock is tight
3. Open inside valve gate

Every time, I get a steady stream of water shooting out of the petcock. It never stops. I've tried tightening it, and my most recent attempt was using teflon tape on the threads. The threads look clean too, no nicks or burrs. Water comes out of the outside spigot too, but every time I have to immediately shut off the inside valve because of all the water streaming out of the petcock.

Is this a pressure problem? I had no problems with the rear bib. It is

50 degrees here in VA so I doubt I have any frozen water in the lines.

I'm going to have to call a plumber soon, this thing is killing me...

Thanks, Drew

[Speedy Jim]

"Petcock" is the small/round cap on the side of the "gate valve"? That's a drain (waste) fitting to allow draining of the pipe to the outside.

You probably knew all that... Inside the round cap, there is a tiny rubber washer which acts to seal the opening when the cap is tightened. Often, the rubber deteriorates or the washer falls out. Take a look and see.

If that's the problem, you can probably fashion a new one from a pencil eraser; just cut a thin slice off with a razor blade. Or stop at the store and buy a whole new valve to get the washer out of it.

Jim

[Drew]

Right---the petcock cap never had a rubber seal in it. It's just a brass cap. I think the one upstairs also didn't have a rubber cap. I'll check the hardware store and see if I can find an aftermarket cap with a seal.

Drew

Speedy Jim wrote:

[Drew]

Jim, Thanks so much, you just saved my weekend! We want to wash cars this afternoon and your hose bib tip did the trick. I went and bought a two pack of caps from Sears Hardware for 1.39 and got two brand new seals with them.

I put the new cap on and no more leaks, thanks so much!

Andrew

Speedy Jim wrote:

[Drew]

Jim, Thanks so much, you just saved my weekend! We want to wash cars this afternoon and your hose bib tip did the trick. I went and bought a two pack of caps from Sears Hardware for 1.39 and got two brand new seals with them.

I put the new cap on and no more leaks, thanks so much!

Andrew

Speedy Jim wrote: