broken hydrant

dinahmare · #1 09/26/08, 10:18 PM

We have a water hydrant in the barn which is broken somewhere below the surface. The hydrant still works but of course it causes my pump to keep pumping because the leak is draining the system.

The hydrant is in a place that makes it difficult to dig up. Both my plumber and my fiance are reluctant to dig it up. They say the hole will be huge and cave in will be a problem since the soil is not virgin.

If I could put myself on the line I would try it but I don't think I've got the physical wherewithall to finish the job and I would end up dragging them into it eventually. Drat, we really need water in the barn during the winter.

Anyone have any ideas?

MELOC · #2 09/26/08, 10:30 PM

hopefully it can be shut off somewhere else or you may eventually have a cave-in anyway when the water weaken's the soil.

farminghandyman · #3 09/26/08, 11:59 PM

it may jsut need to be adjusted, see if you can locate the manufactures web site, and see the adjustment procedure,

and or a new rebuild kit should be able to be bought and normally they can all be worked on from the top, with out digging it up.

http://www.ritchiefount.com/pdf/Hydr...leshooting.pdf

http://www.wellpro.com/catalog/HydrantServicing.pdf

http://www.merrillmfg.com/about/inst...tServicing.htm

the procedure is normally about the same for all makes.

Beeman · #4 09/27/08, 07:21 AM

Do you know the brand of the hydrant? Most hydrants are rebuildable without digging. The top of the hydrant should be threaded onto the pipe. There is usually a rubber plunger at the bottom for a shutoff. Failure to repair leakage will allow the hydrant to freeze. Attempts to adjust old hydrants can cause other problems. I have had the rubber plunger at the bottom tear off when it stuck in the fitting at the bottom after adjustment, this required digging out and complete disassembly. Much easier to install a repair kit.

Jalopy · #5 09/27/08, 07:48 AM

When we've had such problems in the past, in barns and under cement we have abandoned the inside one and set a new freeze free hydrant close outside the barn. then we either hosed the water inside or set up gates so animals could exit outside long enough to drink either free will or twice a day. good luck.

agmantoo · #6 09/27/08, 09:51 AM

Get a real plumber, such problems as you describe is an ever day task for a qualified plumber.

dinahmare · #7 09/27/08, 07:43 PM

Yes, we do have a shut off in the house so as to prevent a constant leak. The plumber who installed it thinks the weep hole became blocked and the water failed to drain down completely last winter which then caused the hydrant to freeze. He too is suggesting we abandon this hydrant and install a new one. I looked at the repair links but they seem to indicate that a blocked weep hole requires replacement.

Thanks to the person who cautioned about a potential cave in if the leak was allowed to continue unchecked. I had thought about opening the shutoff valve in the house, and using the hydrant, and then shutting off the valve in the house. Scratch that thought.

I'm going to figure out the brand of the hydrant and contact the manufacturer to see if there is an alternative.

Thanks for the all the thoughts.

Alice In TX/MO · #8 09/27/08, 07:57 PM

How far down is it?

Buttermilk · #9 09/27/08, 08:28 PM

I used a metal fitting at the bottom of my Hydrant and the acid in the soil ate a hole in it causing a leak. It was under the concrete driveway. I rented a concrete saw and sawed out a 15 inch square block. I replaced the metal fitting with a brass one, and poured concrete back into the 15 inch square hole and my problem was solved. Jay In N.C.

dinahmare · #10 09/27/08, 08:32 PM

As I recall it is 3 or 4 feet down. We can go as low as minus 5 to 10 in the winter at the most so I know we were well below the frost line which I believe is 4 feet.

Buttermilk · #11 09/28/08, 08:07 AM

Our Frost line is 19 inches. It would be very hard to work in a 4 foot hole.
Jay in N.C.

Jennifer L. · #12 09/28/08, 09:51 PM

If the hydrant froze the pipe and it broke, dig up the whole line (backhoe time) and tear the whole thing out. If the hydrant can be repaired, do it, then rebury the hydrant and line. The hoe will make short work of it and get the job done in a few hours. If you worry about the cost, think about the work involved all winter long hauling water and you'll see it's worth it.

You might consider boxing in the area under the hydrant when you redo it so it can be easily gotten to if it ever happens again.

Hope it works out ok for you.

Jennifer

farminghandyman · #13 09/29/08, 09:16 PM

many times you can jsut use a post hole digger and dig it out and then if it is a steel tail pipe, one can unscrew it and place a new one down in a very small hole, I am doing one right now that way, (neighbor ran off the road with a semi truck and flattened it),

on plastic pipe I always put a 3 foot min, steel pipe under ground before the elbow for the hydrant, makes it much solider and so one can work on it like stated above if removal is necessary.

unioncreek · #14 09/29/08, 09:31 PM

I would just dig it up and repair/replace it, It will be cheaper in the long run. You will only need to dig a three to four foot diameter hole and just dig down one side of the hydrant and then around the bottom of the hydrant. I always put a fitting and hose on my weep holes and then run then it into a pile of gravel in the bottom of the hole. You don't need to dig it all at one time and if I was your fiance I would be out there digging right away just to please you.

Bob

dinahmare · #15 10/17/08, 08:23 PM

Bob, aren't you sweet. Clearly you have been both watching and paying attention during the Red Green hour...

But today, talking to my Dad, he pointed out to me that we did not want to be playing around with this footing when we have 7 tons of hay up in the loft (gulp). Duh, what was I thinking!!! Guess we'll put this off until the loft is empty next spring. Oh well! Time to find some good water hauling containers.

Jalopy · #16 10/18/08, 11:22 AM

Another thought,Although it requires digging it could get you by the winter. Dig a hole along the line before it goes under the barn and install a "street valve" like water service companies use. Then when it is buried you turn it on and off with a long handle from above ground. Then you can turn on the water as you do chores the off when you are done. You won't be increaseing the cave in effect as you will be using the water above ground while it is turned on then when you turn it off it takes the pressure off the line. However the same thing can be accomplished by just turning the valve on and off at your house. As long as you always remember to turn it off each time you are done with chores. When you do not have pressure on the line it will not leak and create the hole in the ground. Good luck.

dinahmare · #17 03/21/09, 08:44 PM

What a great day. A neighbor with a small tractor and backhoe came to help us out. He had the hole dug quickly and the cave in was minimal. He installed a new hydrant and we now have water in the barn again.

Oddly, its not really clear to us what was wrong with the old hydrant. Once we were at the bottom of the hole, we turned on the water supply and water came out of the weep holes. The hydrant itself wasn't actually split or broken.

This time, we put a lot of gravel and stone in there for proper drainage. So glad DH doesn't have to haul water out to the barn from the house.

Beeman · #18 03/21/09, 09:55 PM

Don't throw that hydrant away! It's easy to repair and test them.