maro17
New Member
Hi everyone,
I've got a question related to my hose bibb.
A few days ago I noticed that there was a fairly significant drip coming from the spout. I first tried the obvious turning the handle as hard as possible by hand, but this still left the same drip. I then tried turning the handle with pliers, but not so hard as to cause any external or internal damage. No luck. My next thought was to thread a cap onto the spigot, and when that didn't work I added teflon tape. Still no luck.
I finally relented and called a plumber. He walked over to the spigot and immediately proclaimed that the entire assembly would need to be replaced, due to being an Arrowhead brand. He explained that these units eventually develop a groove internally, which causes the drip. I asked him the extent of the work, and he told me that it would require cutting at least a 2'x2' hole in my basement drywall to access the pipe and solder the new joints.
I'll be the first to admit that I am not a pro, and this guy could very well be spot-on. But it doesn't seem to add up. First off, my gut-feeling of this guy, when he was so quick to make the diagnosis, was not good. Also I noticed that I can sometimes get the dripping to stop, which leads me to believe that it is not a "groove in the copper". When I checked on it today it was dripping frequently enough that the droplets very nearly forming a steady small stream. I opened the valve entirely and then gently closed it completely, but gently. This cut off the stream entirely. No dripping, whatsoever. This leads me to believe that it is simply a worn o-ring, and that I was exacerbating the problem when I would tightly close the valve, by causing the gasket to pucker.
Either way, cutting a 2x2' hole in the wall and replacing the entire assembly seems a tad dramatic to me.
Am I off base here? Let me know what other information I can provide to help, and I will also snap a picture tomorrow.
Thanks,
Ben
I've got a question related to my hose bibb.
A few days ago I noticed that there was a fairly significant drip coming from the spout. I first tried the obvious turning the handle as hard as possible by hand, but this still left the same drip. I then tried turning the handle with pliers, but not so hard as to cause any external or internal damage. No luck. My next thought was to thread a cap onto the spigot, and when that didn't work I added teflon tape. Still no luck.
I finally relented and called a plumber. He walked over to the spigot and immediately proclaimed that the entire assembly would need to be replaced, due to being an Arrowhead brand. He explained that these units eventually develop a groove internally, which causes the drip. I asked him the extent of the work, and he told me that it would require cutting at least a 2'x2' hole in my basement drywall to access the pipe and solder the new joints.
I'll be the first to admit that I am not a pro, and this guy could very well be spot-on. But it doesn't seem to add up. First off, my gut-feeling of this guy, when he was so quick to make the diagnosis, was not good. Also I noticed that I can sometimes get the dripping to stop, which leads me to believe that it is not a "groove in the copper". When I checked on it today it was dripping frequently enough that the droplets very nearly forming a steady small stream. I opened the valve entirely and then gently closed it completely, but gently. This cut off the stream entirely. No dripping, whatsoever. This leads me to believe that it is simply a worn o-ring, and that I was exacerbating the problem when I would tightly close the valve, by causing the gasket to pucker.
Either way, cutting a 2x2' hole in the wall and replacing the entire assembly seems a tad dramatic to me.
Am I off base here? Let me know what other information I can provide to help, and I will also snap a picture tomorrow.
Thanks,
Ben
