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Outdoor faucets and yard lines fail quietly, and a bill usually tells you first
The plumbing outside your house gets the weather and none of the attention. A hose bibb that drips onto a flower bed, a spigot that leaks inside the wall in winter, a yard line that loses water underground: none of these announces itself with a mess in your kitchen. Vor-Tex Plumbing Co. repairs and replaces exterior plumbing for homes in Aubrey and Denton County. Call (469) 552-2881.
What we repair outside
- Hose bibbs and outdoor faucets. Dripping spouts, stiff or broken handles, bibbs that leak behind the handle, and bibbs that have split from a freeze.
- Freeze-resistant hose bibbs (also called frost-proof). These have a long stem that puts the shutoff inside the heated wall. They are common on the exterior walls of homes, and they fail in their own ways, covered below.
- Yard water lines. The supply line that runs from the meter to the house, and lines that serve a detached building, a pool house, or an outdoor kitchen.
- Replacement and relocation. Swapping an old bibb for a freeze-resistant model, or adding a new outdoor connection.
If you have something outside that is not on this list, call and describe it. We will tell you whether we handle it.
Signs of an outdoor plumbing problem
- Water dripping from the spout, the handle, or the base of the faucet.
- A wet or discolored patch on the wall near an outdoor faucet, or damp drywall on the inside of that same wall.
- A spigot that runs weakly or not at all.
- A soft, soggy, or unusually green strip of lawn that does not match your irrigation schedule.
- A water bill that climbed while your habits stayed the same.
- The sound of running water when everything inside is off.
What causes these failures
Freezing
Standard bibbs hold water in the spout and the pipe behind it. When that water freezes, it expands and can split the pipe, often inside the wall where you cannot see it. The leak shows up when it thaws. A hose left connected over winter makes it worse because it traps water in the bibb. Freeze-resistant models drain the stem when closed, but only if they slope slightly downward and the hose is disconnected.
Worn internal parts
Washers, packing, and stems wear with use. A drip from the handle is usually a worn packing or stem, and a drip from the spout is a worn washer or seat. These are often repairable without replacing the whole bibb.
Failed vacuum breakers
Most modern hose bibbs have a backflow device at the spout to keep hose water from flowing back into the house supply. When it fails, water can spray out of a small port at the top of the faucet when the water is on.
Ground movement and age
Buried lines shift with changing soil moisture, tree roots reach them, and old fittings corrode. Slow underground leaks can run for months, since the water goes into the ground and never into your living room.
What we do
We start by looking at the faucet or the line and finding where the water is escaping. For a hose bibb, that may mean a repair of the internal parts, or a replacement with a freeze-resistant model if the old one has split or cannot be repaired. For a yard line, we locate the leak, explain the repair, and tell you what has to be dug up and what does not. We give you an up-front estimate before the work begins, and we show you what we did when we finish.
What a visit looks like
- You call. We schedule same-day or next-day service for most exterior repairs, and sooner if water is running that you cannot stop.
- We look and quote on site. The $79 dispatch fee covers the visit and is applied toward your repair total when you approve the work.
- We do the repair. Parts we supply carry a 5-year warranty on parts and labor.
If an outdoor faucet is pouring or a line has split, shut off the water to the house at the main valve and call us. See our 24/7 emergency plumbing page for the steps.
A note for Krugerville homeowners
Krugerville was laid out in 1964 for one-acre lots, and on a lot that size the water line from the meter to the house, and any hose bibbs and outdoor lines beyond it, can run a long way. Mustang SUD, which serves the area, offers an EyeOnWater portal and leak reporting, which is a good first check if your usage looks high.
Related services
Outdoor problems often connect to others. A leak that started at a bibb may point to a larger hidden leak, and a freeze-damaged line is a candidate for pipe insulation. Our plumbing inspection covers the exterior along with the rest of the house. See all plumbing services.