How to keep hydrant from freezing

Well… this is just a very hypothetical solution/idea: How about driving several ground rods into the area near (just outside the barn) the hydrant. And then attaching a block heater to each one? No idea how close, or how many etc. but theoretically it should help to keep the ground above freezing! Any brainiacs care to figure out the actual details?! :smiley:

Another option is an internal heat tape. It goes inside the pipe.

https://heatline.com/retro-line?gclid=CjwKCAjw6-_eBRBXEiwA-5zHaUFqvIQiDDDc_ZytHaY2gU-Pprk4SYvChNNucBM7JZ771-8CVsOYahoCYocQAvD_BwE

I have a short version of this where my water line comes in my mobile home. It was installed 3 years ago and so far works fine.

Wow - thanks for posting this! Didn’t know this existed. It might be just what we need in the above ground water supply line under our 100 year old farmhouse. We are using external heat tape - but it doesn’t work below 15°…

How important is the “constant on” feature?

If that is not as important, and you just want to keep the office out of the water dispensing business :
I would cut off the existing hydrant an inch or two above the ground and use pipes to extend it around the walls of the office and to the final output.
Extended pipe would all have to be at an upward angle (to ensure backward drainage).
Then I would attach the original pump head at the final desired output location.
That means you would have no constant on feature and the water would drain back after each use.
I’d want a plumber’s input on the joint and angle’s needed.

The final choice would depend on the $ for me. It might work out that moving the whole thing might be cheaper.

Your drawing seems to indicate an improper installation of a “frost free hydrant.”

Here is a quick “how to”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=125&v=Q32FWiWf7rk

Reading through the comments and replies I’m unsure of how you want to use this item. Do you want to have it always “on” so that you always have water flow or will you fill and then turn off the flow? If the former then you have a much more difficult problem.

G.

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Fascinated with the previous post from @Christa P about heat tape inside the pipe I contacted Heat Line about their Retro-Line Internal Heat Trace. The owner/inventor called me back. It can only be installed in straight runs of pipe - no elbows at all (it won’t make it around any type of corner or bend). A 70’ installation runs about $900. Anyway, just thought I’d pass that along.

https://heatline.com/retro-line?gclid=CjwKCAjw6-_eBRBXEiwA-5zHaUFqvIQiDDDc_ZytHaY2gU-Pprk4SYvChNNucBM7JZ771-8CVsOYahoCYocQAvD_BwE

I’m in agreement here - the whole point of a frost free hydrant is to install it below the frost line. But if the only reason it froze was because you left the hose attached, then it might be installed properly but being used wrong. (No judgement, I’m preparing to try to mend my hydrant this week because I left the hose on last winter and it had a leak…and now it won’t shut off. :frowning: )

However, if you have a properly installed frost free hydrant you will definitely create a problem keeping the water flow open - because the only reason that they don’t freeze is because they drain.

In discussion with my neighbors last weekend about fixing my hydrant a friend who is an electrician suggested installing a Y splitter and shutting the water to the hose off there, but leaving the hose attached; and in theory, the hydrant should drain. Of course if there is water in the hose it may freeze there, but I think the hydrant should be undamaged?

Of course it doesn’t address the idea of wanting it to be in a better spot. If that’s the case, the best permanent solution would be to install a 2nd hydrant or move the 1st one…and make sure it’s deep enough to be below the frost line. I would not try to rig something up because it’s just a matter of time before it freezes.

In the winter time, above the frost line, if you have flowing water you usually won’t have line freeze problems (but this is likely also dependent upon lowest temps being experienced). Once the flow stops and water is static ice can start to build.

Good observation how a “frost free” hydrant actually works; it’s amazing how many folks don’t know that!!! :slight_smile:

In freezing temps (which we get but don’t long maintain) I move hose reels into the garage (which is not heated but attached to the house and stays above freezing). If the hoses have to stay outside I drain them after use.

Cold weather horse keeping has some real challenges associated with it. Which is one reason we live in East TN and not Superior, WI!!! :slight_smile:

G.

Well, all you need is to break a few by leaving the hose attached and you start to figure it out. I am not sure why we didn’t attempt to repair the last one versus replace it…I have the repair kit now but waiting on my neighbor for help as she is far more handy than I am. I have a backhoe lined up in case it’s unrepairable but all signs suggest that the rubber seal is broken or out of place. I can actually feel it when I open/close the handle.

We had a week of -25F last year that made this small leak freeze solid. But then it ran normally with an occasional leak - again, pointing to the idea that the seal wasn’t quite right.

No way would I try to rig up something that would keep the water flowing in climate that can get that cold, and in an uninsulated, unheated barn.

Even if your hydrant is installed correctly and you have a heated room and good plan for preventing freezing, I would still have a backup plan for worst case scenario in case the hydrant freezes and remains that way.

At my boarding barn, we’ve had some abnormally cold winters where the hydrant in our barn froze, some of the auto-waterers in the main barn froze, and even the barn bathroom pipes froze. You need to make sure you have an efficient and possibly long term (2+ weeks) way to get water to the barn in case your hydrant does end up freezing.

The ![](deal answer here is foundation insulation – you want R-15 (or about 3" of foam) running vertically down at least 2’ deep (3’ would be better) along the building perimeter, and for about 3’ on either side of the vertical water line. That will slow the heat transfer and keep your soil warm enough below the heated space. But that does not not sound like a whole lot of fun to install.

Like this, but 3" instead of 1".

[IMG]https://basc.pnnl.gov/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/cad-previews/42_CAD_slab_1-inch_rigid_foam_1-00002_GBA_1-31-12.jpg?itok=ly9TtckI)