riser stopped working

a really handy item if you have an electric source...... and i am not above putting outlet and plug on a 500' roll of electric wire and using that as a extension cord (temp and always supervised not left on.....) or a generator...is the heat guns, used for stripping paint they are a super version of a hair dryereasy to thaw out lots of things on low power to dry out problem moisture and to soften plastic line when concentrated to make bends ,slip in fittings easyer........ would probably do the trick for you... once you get one you find hundreds of uses

Tried again tonight. The temperature all day has been around 38. Everything is melting.

We ran the hot water into the pipe through the hose. If you feel the pipe, it feels warm. About room temperature warm. Still doesn't work.

Forcast for the rest of the week calls for temps hovering around freezing (a little above during the day, a little below at night). My wife thinks that some of the parts have become disconnected. So when you raise the lever, it doesn't raise the plunger on the other end of the riser.

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See if the rod is really moving up and down. You may need to tighten the square bolt that holds the rod to the linkage it may be slipping.

mikell

Paul:

I had the same problem here a few days ago when I neglected to take a hose off the faucet. Fortunately it did not split the riser.

First, if the riser is warm to the touch and the outside temp is 38 degrees, ice is not your problem. Even a little thaw at the freezing point will allow some warm water to bypass, and after that a thaw is quick.

Be sure and check to see that the faucet handle is in fact moving the down rod up and down. Once one of these faucets freezes the first thing that happens when you try to turn it on is that the setscrew on the downrod slips and you are out of adjustment. The handle then goes up and down but the downrod never moves.

Don't use fire on the riser. Heat tape, hot water, but no fire. If the water is flowing in the main line you are either frozen (not likely) or the faucet downrod is not moving.

By the way: I installed all my frost-free faucets at three feet (Oklahoma) but I put a fibreglass sack of rock under each one so that the drain would have a place to work. I used the plastic cloth sacks that seed comes in, about a bushel of rock in each. When the ground settles well on a new installation I pour an l8 x l8 inch x 5 inch block of concrete around it. They never wobble after that. If the concrete ever has to be removed a couple of blows with a sledge will do the trick.

The rod is moving up and down.

I guess we're going to have to dig it up in the spring and try to figure out what is wrong with it.

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[raising chickens] [diatomaceous earth] [permaculture] [rocket mass heater] [lawn care]

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OK now for the possibly bad news.
The valve at the bottom of the hydrant is a rubber plunger that lifts out of the fitting at the bottom to allow the water out. This rubber plunger is attached to the end of the rod that is attached to the handle with the set screw. The rubber is vulcanized to a piece of brass that threads on the end of the rod. If the rubber rips loose from the brass it will stay lodged in the valve and stop water flow. Just how do I know this? Well I've got one inoperative hydrant that I will have to dig up because of this. I have removed the upper handle part and removed the rod and the rubber has come off.

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