Insulating an outside tap.

[Manks]

We have an outside tap that I suspect was installed many years ago. The pipe comes out the ground and runs up the outside of a garage wall. There is no stop tap for it as far as we have ever found and I suspect it tees off the main or the "lead in" to our property.

The pipe was insulated with grey foam insulation but this year it frozen for the first time. So I added a second layer of foam and a foam hood for the tap.

It has still frozen up.

I suppose I could use some industrial type lagging, but it would look unsightly. Boxing in the tap is a possibility but it will be impractical.

Does anyone have any good ideas please?

[Gingerbread Man]

It should have isolation before it goes outside, which should be turned off and the tap opened to avoid a burst pipe.

If it's on the main and bursts, you'll be buggered.

I don't think you'll be able to lag it well enough in these cold temperatures. Unless you can redo the pipe work, so it runs up inside the house and then goes through the wall at the correct height. That way there isn't much to freeze.

[dave_s13]

What he said - twice.

Be afraid.

My house has had no heating on for 7 weeks due to my extension and I've has 2 split copper pipes, 3 push fit joints pop off and a leaky boiler.

This weather is doing my fvckin head in, I'm never getting out of the inlaws and back home at this rate

[Manks]

Gingerbread Man said:

It should have isolation before it goes outside, which should be turned off and the tap opened to avoid a burst pipe.

If it's on the main and bursts, you'll be buggered.

I don't think you'll be able to lag it well enough in these cold temperatures.

It doesn't ever go inside as far as we can make out. I suspect it feeds directly off the water main.

[dave_s13]

Manks said:

Gingerbread Man said:

It should have isolation before it goes outside, which should be turned off and the tap opened to avoid a burst pipe.

If it's on the main and bursts, you'll be buggered.

I don't think you'll be able to lag it well enough in these cold temperatures.

It doesn't ever go inside as far as we can make out. I suspect it feeds directly off the water main.

Do you know where your main isolating tap is? Usually in the footpath.

I would make sure you know how to turn this off and go buy a long reach tap key if needed.

Just in case.

[ledger]

dave_s13 said:

Do you know where your main isolating tap is? Usually in the footpath.

I would make sure you know how to turn this off and go buy a long reach tap key if needed.

Just in case.

I would try and turn this off now as a test. You may find it's buried below 6 inches of mud and the first time you try and turn off the water it snaps off as mine did. Better it breaks when you haven't got an urgent need to turn it off!

[condor]

ledger said:

dave_s13 said:

Do you know where your main isolating tap is? Usually in the footpath.

I would make sure you know how to turn this off and go buy a long reach tap key if needed.

Just in case.

I would try and turn this off now as a test. You may find it's buried below 6 inches of mud and the first time you try and turn off the water it snaps off as mine did. Better it breaks when you haven't got an urgent need to turn it off!

It might also be under a block of thick ice - I had to turn my main external stopcock off last year as the internal one developed a slight leak. The external one was under water and the stopcock to that stuck fast...needed Anglian water to come out and fix it - they took about 4 days to come out.

[dave_s13]

ledger said:

dave_s13 said:

Do you know where your main isolating tap is? Usually in the footpath.

I would make sure you know how to turn this off and go buy a long reach tap key if needed.

Just in case.

I would try and turn this off now as a test. You may find it's buried below 6 inches of mud and the first time you try and turn off the water it snaps off as mine did. Better it breaks when you haven't got an urgent need to turn it off!

Exactly what happened to mine. Buried in that much muck you couldn't get to the tap, and so deep in the ground it's impossible to reach without excavation.

Yorkshire water were pretty good though and had a new one sorted within the week.

[Manks]

I know where the main cock is, but where can I get a long reach tap key?

[Gingerbread Man]

Manks said:

I know where the main cock is, but where can I get a long reach tap key?

B&Q, plumbers merchants, builders merchants?

[dave_s13]

Manks said:

I know where the main cock is, but where can I get a reach around?

B&Q sell them for about £20.

Just ask at the desk for a reach around for your cock.

[SplatSpeed]

leave the tap dripping

[Manks]

I am thinking I might leave this be until after Christmas but buy a wrench in the meantime. If it does burst I will dig out the pipe and cap it off - we have another outside tap and this one is superfluous.

[jas xjr]

Manks said:

I know where the main cock is, but where can I get a long reach tap key?

if you have an offcut of scaffolding you can make one. just hit it with a lump hammer until you get the correct chape. then use a large pair of molegrips to turn it