[RichieTee]

Can anyone tell, from the picture, if this spigot is a screw on or solder on?
The handle broke off, because the screw rusted and the head of the screw broke off -- so I can't simply put a new handle on it.
I see I can screw off just the part on which the handle mounted, but I don't know if the size is standard?
I'd like to replace the whole thing if it's an easy screw-off job -- can anyone tell from the picture if it is or not?
The house was built in 1961, I wouldn't be surprised if that spigot was there from the start!

 

[rjniles]

Looks solder to me.

 

[jmon]

It looks like it may be soldered right to the hose bib. Can you go inside a take some pics from there and post them? That would give us a better idea of what you have.

Yes, I agree, a new frost free hose bib for replacement is the way to go. .

 

[RichieTee]

It looks like it may be soldered right to the hose bib. Can you go inside a take some pics from there and post them? That would give us a better idea of what you have.

Yes, I agree, a new frost free hose bib for replacement is the way to go. .

Inside of which part? Do you mean take off that front piece to see what the inside mechanism looks like? Sorry I don't know the name of these parts

 

[jmon]

Inside of which part? Do you mean take off that front piece to see what the inside mechanism looks like? Sorry I don't know the name of these parts

Go inside to where the acess is for the hose bib. Take pictures there. You would have to have access to it from the inside to make the repair.

 

[RichieTee]

Go inside to where the acess is for the hose bib. Take pictures there. You would have to have access to it from the inside to make the repair.

Considering the placement, I would guess that would be behind my living room wall, or a pipe that comes up from under the slab of the house.

 

[Half-fast eddie]

You could probably replace the stem and seat pretty easily, and have a like-new faucet. Turn off the water, remove the parts, and take them to the store to find matching replacements.

 

[jmon]

Considering the placement, I would guess that would be behind my living room wall, or a pipe that comes up from under the slab of the house.

So no access from the inside and I take it you don't want to cut a hole for an access panel in your living room.

Well, you could try hast-fast eddie suggestion and rebuild it, if you don't have soldering skills.

If you want to replace it, you will have to replace it the same way it was put on. You will need to turn off water, drain line, unsoldered it, clean&prep the pipe, and solder on new one the same way. It's old school, but you can still buy solder hose bibs. Doesn't look like room enough for sharkbtrys.

 

[RichieTee]

You could probably replace the stem and seat pretty easily, and have a like-new faucet. Turn off the water, remove the parts, and take them to the store to find matching replacements.

That's what I was hoping -- is that something home depot or lowe's would sell? Or would I have to find a specialty plumbing store?

So no access from the inside and I take it you don't want to cut a hole for an access panel in your living room.

Well, you could try hast-fast eddie suggestion and rebuild it, if you don't have soldering skills.

If you want to replace it, you will have to replace it the same way it was put on. You will need to turn off water, drain line, unsoldered it, clean&prep the pipe, and solder on new one the same way. It's old school, but you can still buy solder hose bibs. Doesn't look like room enough for sharkbtrys.

I can solder, I've replaced a few valves and a copper pipe that was busted in the house, but this thing works just fine -- that handle is the only issue. I'm looking for a good balance between "it ain't broke don't fix it" and a somewhat quick fix to do it right. If I have to go through the wall to solder it, I'd just opt for a new handle and use some kind of adhesive to get it on there. I'll try to remove the parts and see if I can find them. I'm guessing they won't be at the home depot.

 

[RRH]

Hold the valve from turning. Then remove the front nut. Should be able to twist out the stem. Try for a replacement. Or maybe able to heat the end of the stem. And maybe enough of the screw left. So can use a vise grips to remove. Or drill and tap and die for a new screw.

 

[RichieTee]

I was a bit inspired by The Old House -- I saw them replace the guts of a multi turn water shut off valve in a matter of minutes -- I was hoping I could replace the guts in this one just as quickly. The front door on this particular property had the screw holes for the hinges mostly stripped. The previous owner used bigger and bigger screws to try and "fix" it. I saw a quick 5 minute fix on This Old House using scrap pieces of wood and wood glue to fix the holes and couldn't believe how easily it was to get my door closing smoothly!

 

[HayesFJ]

Looks solder to me.

It looks like it may be soldered right to the hose bib.

Just curious. What about the pictures lead you to believe that this is soldered? My house in Texas has a male water pipe sticking out of the wall and takes a hose bib with a female end. Different that what I was used to in Pennsylvania. The hose bib picture shows that it has a wrench fitting incorporated into the design, so perhaps it could be screwed on. I am not challenging your diagnosis, just wondering what you see that I don't.

 

[jmon]

Just curious. What about the pictures lead you to believe that this is soldered? My house in Texas has a male water pipe sticking out of the wall and takes a hose bib with a female end. Different that what I was used to in Pennsylvania. The hose bib picture shows that it has a wrench fitting incorporated into the design, so perhaps it could be screwed on. I am not challenging your diagnosis, just wondering what you see that I don't.

It could be, would have to see it up close.

From the picture, to me it looks like it's soldered because of the way it slips right into the back of the hose bib. See the piece sticking out the back where the pipe goes into it? That's where you would put the torch. They all have that six sided nut mold, even the solder ones.

 

[RichieTee]

Just curious. What about the pictures lead you to believe that this is soldered? My house in Texas has a male water pipe sticking out of the wall and takes a hose bib with a female end. Different that what I was used to in Pennsylvania. The hose bib picture shows that it has a wrench fitting incorporated into the design, so perhaps it could be screwed on. I am not challenging your diagnosis, just wondering what you see that I don't.

That's the exact reason I posted it -- the wrench fitting, and the fact that I've never seen such a clean solder job. Even the cleanest solder jobs I've seen have a bead around the outside of the connection.

It does explain why that spacing is there!

 

[DexterII]

It looks to me like that spiggot is soldered because you should otherwise be able to see threads at the back of it and I don't see any. The fact that the body has a hex for a wrench is not conclusive because it is a casting, so it seems most likely that they would have used the same casting for all, before sending them down the line to be either threaded or reamed and polished. And the hex gives you a good place to hold it with a wrench to ensure it doesn't turn while being serviced. As far as guessing where it is exactly, now's a good time to figure that out, whether for immediate or future reference, and you can do that by measuring horizontal and vertical from known points like windows or doors, dryer vents, utility lines, etc. I didn't see an answer to one of your questions, but you should be able to find the parts to repair it as is at your local hardware or big box. There's not a picture of the other side, so can't say if it might be there, but look it over good and you might find a couple of initials or other mark to nail down the manufacturer, but otherwise will just have to eyeball the right replacement. If you're in an area with freezing temperature, you may need to apply some drywall patching skills as well, but now might be the time to open the wall and replace it with a frost proof one. On the other hand, it makes sense that you don't want it sticking out into a room, and it looks like it's survived more than just a few winters, so repairing it place might make the most sense.

 

[HayesFJ]

If other homes in the neighborhood were built by the same builder, perhaps a neighbor will know if it is soldered or screwed on.

 

[SARG]

Frostless spigot perhaps.... the straight body certainly would indicate that.
I do not see another option but to find the inside connection. The threaded component that is rusted off ( that a nut screws onto ) is probably the end of a long shaft that runs the length of the housing .. maybe six inches long or more.
Replacing the internal components today is truly tough ....... you have to determine the original maker and then hope they have not changed the design.
In my case I replaced the internals about a decade ago and used the original housing. I tried to do the same last year and found that the design had been totally changed resulting in my having to replace the entire unit.

 

[Ghostmaker]

Looks like it may be a threaded pipe. Turn off the water and unscrew it.