Hose Bib Bonnet Packing

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go_hercules

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I have a hose bib which leaks from the stem. I tried opening the valve and snugging up the packing nut. It slowed the leak but didn't completely fix it. Is the packing sold as a preformed piece, or only as the graphite type string? I am pretty sure I have seen the preformed ones that looked like a washer with a bell shape on top but don't recall for sure and am not sure what material they would have been. Thanks a lot.
 

Reach4

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They sell preformed, black graphite string, and white teflon string. I like the teflon.
 

go_hercules

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The packing on this bib is about the diameter of a nickel and a little bit thicker. Almost looks like it was rubber, doesn't seem like graphite impregnated. It has a bowl shaped washer below the packing and the nut is bowl shaped above. This squeezes the packing inwards against the shaft? How would the string type packing work on something like this?
 

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The packing on this bib is about the diameter of a nickel and a little bit thicker. Almost looks like it was rubber, doesn't seem like graphite impregnated. It has a bowl shaped washer below the packing and the nut is bowl shaped above. This squeezes the packing inwards against the shaft? How would the string type packing work on something like this?
So the packing is shaped a little like an olive with the shaft passing through the pimento hole? I would try leaving that packing in place, and adding some Teflon (PTFE) packing around the shaft next to the existing packing, and squeeze it all together with the bonnet nut. I am not a plumber, and I have not ever done that.
 

go_hercules

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Yeah, looks like a flattened out olive. I guess most people would just replace the whole bib, but the feed pipe for this is one is stubbed out of stucco no more than an inch and the bib is soldered in so damn near impossible to cut and sweat another one in. I see what you mean about just jamming some more packing string in there. It would probably work but seems kind of cheesy. Maybe I will hit the stores tomorrow and see if something looks similar.
 

Quarterball

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I realize you don't need it, but have you considered replacing it with a frostproof sillcock? You could cut your feed pipe inside the house, assuming you have access, and then you'd have up to 12-14" or so of sillcock length to connect to the feed pipe. A little more expensive in parts than a standard hose bibb, but installation might be easier and you'd have all new parts.

I can suggest a quality frostproof sillcock if you need one.
 

go_hercules

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I am good at drywalling, but I hate to start cutting walls at this stage. I bought this house new, so I know nothing has been changed. So I wish I knew why the numbskulls had to put the hose bib so close to the stucco. The plumbing at the front of the house is even worse. The pressure regulator valve looks like it was plumbed in before the stucco went on. The copper tubing was obviously way to close to the house, so they just stuccoed around the regulator and buried it about half way in stucco. I didn't want to bust out the stucco to extract the regulator, so I got lucky and was able to just change the guts in the original regulator body.
 

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Is there any identification on the part of the hose bib that you can see? Maybe post a photo of that if you don't recognize it.
 
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