I recently bought a house and am now trying to winterize it. I found out that the outdoor shower has no on or off cutoff water valves, so what do I do before it starts to freeze? The previous owners just completely shut down the house, all water etc., for the winter, but we want to enjoy the house. Is it a big expensive job to add valves? i.e. cutting through the basement roof etc. co can I just cover the pipes outside with a protective cover? Thanks
Shower – How to Winterize an Outdoor Shower with no Valves
outdoorshower
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Another thing to try would be a slightly more aggressive cleaner than vinnegar - I've had good luck soaking the shower head in CLR, making sure to shake it up every few hours.
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).
Best Answer
If plumbing supplies an exterior shower that is subject to freezing weather then any standing water must be drained or it may break the pipes as it freezes. Just shutting the valve off will not remove the water beyond the valve. Depending on the pipe material, your plumbing skills, and how the piping is configured it would be wise to install valves on the lines that will be subject to freezing weather, but they should be inside if possible. It might be a good idea to also install a "T" connector (also inside) at a low point to the line in order to drain any standing water that would otherwise damage the pipe if frozen. You could attach a hose bib (spigot) to the "T" to make winterizing a simple job. "Ball valves" are best for the shut off valves.