angledrainpexplumbing
I've never installed any plumbing before, but I'm going to try to install an outside faucet/sillcock because it seems fairly simple. The only interesting part is that the pex tubing will be run under a crawl space that gets extremely cold in the winter months.
I'm going to use a shut-off valve that can be drained, but I'm not sure the best way to pitch the pex tubing across such a long distance. I was going to use simple talon clamps.
Do I really even need to worry too much about the pitch?
The purpose of the extension on a frost free faucet is to get the valve itself in a heated space inside of your home so that it could never freeze (see the below diagram). If you only have an inch or so of insulation that's being penetrated by these plumbing pipes, it's likely that the valve would still reach the freezing point inside of your wall. So any type of build out on the outside of your home to mount the faucet is defeating the purpose of the extension. The proper way to use this type of faucet would be to build out something on the inside of your home, which I'm guessing isn't possible, or at least unattractive in your situation.
Therefore, I'd recommend getting in the habit of shutting off the water on the inside, possibly replacing the shutoff valve with a quarter turn ball valve so that it's quick, easy, and obvious when it's been done. You want to open the outside faucets when the water has been shut off so that the lines are empty when they do eventually freeze. After they've been left to drain for a day, I cover my outdoor faucets with insulating covers. This is also a good time to drain the hoses and bring them into a protected location (e.g. a garage or shed).
Yes. There are special plastic clamps that can be used with PEX so that the pipe does not wear. You should secure it about every 32 to 48 inches, and anywhere to prevent the expansion/contraction of the pipe to cause wear. It is not necessary to clamp where the pipe runs through holes in wooden joists/studs.
Best Answer
yes you do. even if you drain it, its going to get water lying in low spots. that will rupture the line if it freezes. just make sure you slope it 1" in 4 ft to where you are going to drain it. that way it will have no water in it come freeze up. you can just mount it with stood off pex clamps