HowTo Get Rid of That Horrible BackFlow Preventer on Your Hose Spigot
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- čas přidán 25. 06. 2024
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The Anti-Siphon Valves or Back-Flow Preventers that are now required on outside hose spigots are very prone to failure, especially in hard water areas. If yours has started leaking or making funny noises, it should be replaced with a new one or bypassed all together with a SpigotMaster. In this video I show how to remove your old vacuum breaker and replace it with a SpigotMaster to get rid of the problem all together. I even show how to drill out the set screw if yours is broken off.
Watch My Other Videos on This Subject:
1- Fix Your BackFlow Preventer With an $8 Single Stage Model:
• Fix a Hose Bib Vacuum ...
2- SpigotMaster Video Without Set Screw Drilling: • Eliminate/Fix Your Hos...
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My house is pretty new (2006) and 2 of the 3 exterior hose spigots have back flow preventers. One sprays on hose nozzle shut off, as expected, but it also leaks a lot during use. We have high calcium carbonate in the city water (183 ppm). With the help of this video I removed the back flow preventer by drilling out the set screw. I had to use 3 drill bits, #35, #22, #16 each progressively larger until it could be turned with channel locks. Then filed the damaged threads with a small "V" file. My hose washer was a little pitted, so I turned it over and magically, no leak, no spray. Luckily my set screw was on the side, my spigot threads were standard and it was only 102 degrees at noon here in the desert . My patio mister is a success! Thank you. Good job Mr Days.
Awesome! Glad I could help! :)
I really hope you don't end up poisoning your family and your neighborhood now that you've left yourself unprotected from backflow/back-siphonage of anything at the other end of your hose. People should be replacing their vacuum breakers, not removing them. Do you remove your smoke detectors just because they run out of batteries?
@@RioSyler2010 Waah
I hope you replaced it!!! Seriously!!! It's an important and necessary device. I know someone that got a new one, and rather than use the "enclosed screw-which ends up breaking off, they used a 5mm set screw, for easy removal later.....
15 years ago that black rtv tube was full. But, with the modern and helpful marvels of backflow preventers, you have all but used it up. Thanks big government!
I essentially achieved the same thing. I took it apart, removed the rubber bladder then filled the tiny holes liberally with JB Weld. Works like a champ!
Thanks for the DIY. I was looking at replacing the two I have because of the leaking they do but heard they very short lifespans. Your video was exactly what I needed. Thanks a bunch!!!👍👍👍
Glad to help!
If they are leaking, they need to be replaced, not removed. If you do not have a vacuum breaker, and you leave your garden hose filling, or even sitting in a soapy bucket, a mud puddle, swimming pool etc, and the pressure drops even slightly in the city mainline for any reason, you will end up drinking whatever your garden hose is sitting in because it will suck up whatever is at the other end of your hose and it will enter the drinking water supply. It's the same exact principal as siphoning gas out of a car and the exact reason why these vacuum breakers were invented. If you want to get sick from water contamination, possibly poison your neighbors & possibly be fined by local authorities for willingly contaminating the potable water supply, then go ahead and leave your home unprotected against backflow/back siphonage. Google backflow or back-siphonage water contamination cases if you don't believe me. Thousands of people have gotten extremely sick & hundreds have died from not following proper backflow prevention measures, and your "paranoid city officials" are trying to prevent people from getting sick or dying.
Thank you from 10 years in the future. Got that piece of crap off my faucet and now I'm running leak free.
Very informative. I just took mine off. I had no idea what it was. It was spraying every time I used my hose. I thought it needed a washer. Thank god that screw wasn’t broken off. Now I just have a regular hose attached.
That's great if your hose screwed right on!
Just followed your instructions. Thank you.
Glad I could help!
I tried an easy-out at first but the set screw wouldn't budge. Luckily I found this video. It took almost an hour to drill out my screw but it finally worked. Thanks for posting this video.
Saved me 600 bucks. No joke- thanks for the video.
Thank you! No visible set screw, but it was SET. A large channel lock and BRUTE FORCE unscrewed the SOB while grinding the brass as I unscrewed it. Was able to attach the hose to the slightly ground off threads. NO MORE LEAKS!!!
Nice!
I got lucky. I decided to grind down the little screw with a round grinder so my drill could get a good footing, and about 5 seconds into grinding it, the screw came loose and sort of screwed itself out. I finished unscrewing it with my fingers it was so loose. I removed the vacuum break completely and now, for the first time since I bought the house (built brand new) there are 0 leaks from my faucet. Thanks for the tip.
Awesome!
You're welcome!
I think he meant "Dissimilar" rather than "Dielectric". Electrolysis is caused by a difference in electrochemical potential, thus If the joint was dielectric then you could not have electrolysis. Dielectric of course meaning something that for all intent and purpose is non conductive. Also there are some valid reasons for anti-siphon protections for potable water supplies, but I'm inclined to agree with the video poster that most of the point of use devices are rather horrible.. ether from poor engineering or possibly (most likely) planned obsolescence. If you desire anti-siphon protection but do not desire leaking faucets try installing a simple spring check valve on the inlet side (piped side) of your standard or frost-free sillcock (faucet) assembly. Very effective with no dripping or spraying. And thank you to the TrailerDayz.. you added a new fitting to my mental inventory!
Thanks for the help. Hate these things.
Great Video !!!
Thank you for the video. This saved us a plumber visit.
You're welcome!
Thanks for the video. I bought a house with these things on the bibs. They leak water all over the place and can finally remove them.
Learnt a lot of new facts
No you didn’t this guy is a hack and is giving horrible advice
TrailerDayz - thank you for this video. Great job on this project especially the explanation of all tools used. Great job! Thank you!
If you do not have a vacuum breaker, and you leave your garden hose filling, or even sitting in a soapy bucket, a mud puddle, swimming pool etc, and the pressure drops even slightly in the city mainline for any reason, you will end up drinking whatever your garden hose is sitting in because it will suck up whatever is at the other end of your hose and it will enter the drinking water supply. It's the same exact principal as siphoning gas out of a car and the exact reason why these vacuum breakers were invented. If you want to get sick from water contamination, possibly poison your neighbors & possibly be fined by local authorities for willingly contaminating the potable water supply, then go ahead and leave your home unprotected against backflow/back siphonage. Google backflow or back-siphonage water contamination cases if you don't believe me. Thousands of people have gotten extremely sick & hundreds have died from not following proper backflow prevention measures, and your "paranoid city officials" are trying to prevent people from getting sick or dying.
TrailerDayz, thank you for such a detailed video to show the fix. I have the exactly same issue as your video shows.
You're welcome!
Great information. I thought I was the only one who was having trouble with these back-flow preventers. Thanks!
Great video. Totally helped with what I thought and affirmation is always nice. Like the way you showed step by step. Thanks
Glad I could help!
If you do not have a vacuum breaker, and you leave your garden hose filling, or even sitting in a soapy bucket, a mud puddle, swimming pool etc, and the pressure drops even slightly in the city mainline for any reason, you will end up drinking whatever your garden hose is sitting in because it will suck up whatever is at the other end of your hose and it will enter the drinking water supply. It's the same exact principal as siphoning gas out of a car and the exact reason why these vacuum breakers were invented. If you want to get sick from water contamination, possibly poison your neighbors & possibly be fined by local authorities for willingly contaminating the potable water supply, then go ahead and leave your home unprotected against backflow/back siphonage. Google backflow or back-siphonage water contamination cases if you don't believe me. Thousands of people have gotten extremely sick & hundreds have died from not following proper backflow prevention measures, and your "paranoid city officials" are trying to prevent people from getting sick or dying.
thank you so much
Great instructions. My first problem was removing the broken backflow preventer. This video clearly showed me how to fix that. The remaining portion of the video demonstrates possible replacements. Thank you
Glad to help!
God bless you good sir!
You want god to bless him for convincing people to leave their homes open to backflow/back-siphonage and potentially poisoning themselves & everyone in their neighborhood? Please educate yourself on backflow & back-siphonage illnesses & deaths, which were rampant prior to the invention of these and other types of backflow/back-siphonage prevention assemblies.
I've replaced four backflow valves in four years. Finally bought two of these today. No more leaks. HOORAY!
Awesome!
Great video!!! You were so helpful, explain8ngbeqch step, even getting the science of the corrosion.
great job. that's exactly what I need to do to mine in front of the house..hopefully I won't have no problem doing it.
Dude you are a life saver.. well, at least a headache saver anyway.. if municipalities wanted these devices to be more well accepted by the public, they should have made them easier to be replaced. Threw mine straight into the trash.. good riddance.
If you do not have a vacuum breaker, and you leave your garden hose filling, or even sitting in a soapy bucket, a mud puddle, swimming pool etc, and the pressure drops even slightly in the city mainline for any reason, you will end up drinking whatever your garden hose is sitting in because it will suck up whatever is at the other end of your hose and it will enter the drinking water supply. It's the same exact principal as siphoning gas out of a car and the exact reason why these vacuum breakers were invented. If you want to get sick from water contamination, possibly poison your neighbors & possibly be fined by local authorities for willingly contaminating the potable water supply, then go ahead and leave your home unprotected against backflow/back siphonage. Google backflow or back-siphonage water contamination cases if you don't believe me. Thousands of people have gotten extremely sick & hundreds have died from not following proper backflow prevention measures, and your "paranoid city officials" are trying to prevent you ignorant people from getting sick or dying.
@@RioSyler2010 We understand the principle behind it.. but if they want the general population to follow through with it, this isn't the way to do it.
@@RioSyler2010 how many people leave a hose on, or put it in a soapy bucket, and walk away, or leave it in a mud puddle (no mud in AZ.) put it in a swimming pool, etc.? thats a crazy reasoning to put up with a technology that only makes you keep buying more hoses and more parts to fix it. so sue me.
good ole days!!
You mean the good ole days when people used to frequently be poisoned by backflow/back-siphonage because these hadn't been invented yet? These things save lives, and keep you & your neighbors from drinking whatever is at the other end of your garden hose when the pressure drops and it gets sucked back into your drinking water, be it pesticide spray, a soapy bucket of water, your swimming pool water, puddles full of dog urine, mud & parasites, and the list goes on.
Thank you for talking about the ridiculousness of the backflow valve and for looking at different set-ups we may have at our own houses.
Why is a spigot master required? Why can't you attach the garden hose directly to the spigot? Ty
Good question. Did I miss the answer somewhere?
Mentions in the first minute
@@blaskotron no mention
@@philg6115 are you sure you watched it? It's so the dirty water from the hose doesn't corrupt the water on the pipes and potentially contaminate your drinking water.
Go put your garden hose in a bucket of chemicals and then go it the house and open up with kitchen sink spigot a few minutes later and drink the water. You'll learn real quick the purpose the the back-flow preventor. Having been in the pest control business for years, it was common to observe tech's filling up there spray rigs in the back of the work trucks. It only took once of someone having the end of the hose below the water level in the spray rig and then having the customers washer suck about 5 gal. of termiticide into her washer. It was not a good day. Most state Pest control industry now require a air-gap or back flow device on the spray rigs and if one is caught without it there is a heft fine. People have to realize yes they are a pain in the azz but they are designed to protect the health of the public.
Awesome product. I purchased two and solved my front and rear faucet problem. 5 Stars!
I'm glad to hear that, but are you not having leaks with them when the spigot is left "ON" or get a squirt whenever you turn "off" the spigot? That's what people are complaining about other than the set screw problem whenever needing to change them out.
Life saver
Hahaha this guy made me crack up
I didn’t go through all the comments. The back flow preventer is a “code” requirement. Does the Spigot Master prevent back flow?
Thanks for the video. I'm not against having a backflow prevention valve. I'm against a design that makes them permanent (and of course, nothing lasts forever). I tried to replace my leaky valve myself as this video explains, except the break-off screw is facing the wall!! Now a plumber will have to cut the copper pipe and weld a new spigot into place!
Just an FYI: If you cannot get the top piece off due to a set screw that you can't access, simply remove the bottom piece (larger part of the vacuum breaker) and the order the SpigotMaster SM01.125 and this larger sized SpigotMaster will screw right onto the top piece of the vacuum breaker. Problem solved.
Why do I need a spigot master? Can’t I just attach a hose directly to the original faucet?
@@bobmiller593 the city where I live requires backflow prevention. But honestly, who's enforcing that?? As you wrote, simply connect your hose directly to the spigot and be done with it.
Do I need this if I have above ground impact sprinklers connect garden hoses to water timers.
Thank you so much. These stupid thing is wasting water and having a big explosion of water every time I turn off my garden hose.
Yes I’m tired of that! 15 years of the valve spraying me when I turn off the faucet while I have a nozzle on the hose in the closed position.
You're awesome
Thanks!
My backflow preventer failed after just 2 years. Thank you for this information and your common sense approach to these over reaching requirements.
What do you mean by fail exactly? How would you know it failed to prevent a backflow?
@@enufots4621 they start leaking too much water when turned on.
Hate those things. Turn them off and water sprays everywhere. And, you are right. Under what circumstances will your hose be connected to a contaminated source and under pressure enough to be go back into the system?
Thanks for the video. I googled to see what contractors had to say about this anti siphon valve. One guy put it best when the owner asked him why he needed this $300 installation. He told them "if a crack house down the street blows up and catches the two houses next to them on fire.....and if they send out 5 fire trucks to put the fire out your water will lose pressure and run backwards.....plus if I don't install it I will lose my license." Ok, and if the water line feeding your neighborhood breaks. But who has a hose turned on and sitting in hazardous waste water? My faucets are always off. When I connect the hose to it I have a nozzle that is shut off. I turn on the faucet and squeeze the handle on the nozzle and water shoots out. No way I am going to contaminate the public water supply. Stupid! My house is two years old and one of the anti siphons is not working properly. These babies are toast as soon as my Spigotmaster shows up.
exactly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Stupid is as stupid does.
it seems to me we've all been testing the beta model. lets see how Spigotmaster performs. they are not going to be popular if they continue leaking and breaking every few years. my house was brand new plumbing, new pipes, etc, and these breakers leaked in just one years of use.
The garden hose does not have to be under pressure to contaminate the water supply. It can actually siphon back under certain circumstances. My problem is that the vacuum breakers often leak everywhere, make noise, or in the case of my new ones, have threads too short and the garden hose thread collar hits the housing before the rubber gasket seals. I'd be fine with any of these that work and have decent-length threads.
In all seriousness, can you give me a quick physics lesson on how water that is in the hose can siphon back through a closed gate or ball valve?
@@bobisonline It can't. The valve would have to be open. Engineers in society manage risk by a combination of severity and likelihood. The likelihood that you'd be filling your pesticide sprayer at the same time a water main breaks, allowing your pesticide to siphon back into the water system, then not drain out the break before they get it fixed, is astronomically low. But the severity of consequences are so high they want you to put vacuum breakers on the part of the system you might be careless in using (i.e. everything after the hose bib). If you never leave the hose down in anything and walk away, you'd technically never have a problem, but not everyone can be trusted to be diligent about it. Some pig farmer might permanently leave his garden hose stuck into a sewage tank with the water running slowly all the time. Imagine the scenarios.
@@jlentztube Thank you, I totally agree on your points. Interesting that the Spigotmaster is made though and costs 4-5 times what a vacuum breaker costs! Opportunism for certain!
@@jlentztubeI do have a check valve on my houses water supply line! The city is safe!!! I refuse to put vacuum breakers on my stuff
My subdivision has them but the old neighborhood next to ours doesn’t. Neither does any of my families in older neighborhoods. You clarified what I already believed, these are stupid and pointless! I only hook up water hoses to water my grass. And I have an outside water softener system in between the city’s main and my house lines. So I’m just removing mine permanently. Why even bother with a spigot master? Hook up the hose straight to the spigot like when we were kids.
If your spigot has normal threads, go for it.
Drilling out the setscrew is a rookie move. Over drill and you will be calling a plumber. Simply use a cut off wheel on a dremel to cut a slot in the set screw. Then use a screwdriver to back it out. It works because I've done it.
OK, thanks for pointing out the Set Screw Location and how to remove it. One thing I do not understand is the Purpose of the 'Spigot Master'? --- I just attached my Hose directly to the Faucet. My Problem is fixed. So, can you please tell me why I need a 'Spigot Master'?
If you're spigot doesn't have special threads then you're good to go.
Thank you for the helpful video. Why would I need the Spigotmaster? Why can't I just connect the hose to the valve?
You can try.
These Arrowhead spigots have a special proprietary thread on them.
Thanks- good information
Thanks! Glad you liked it.
Its needed if you hook a sprinkler system. Just like the ground wire, not needed until you really need it
Thanks for the useful tutorial but how do you do u remove it if the set screw is facing down (towards the wall). There is no way to get a drill or anything behind it? Do you just hack it in half - what does one hack with?
This is exactly why these external backflow preventers are ridiculous. If you have this exact adapter, the bottom part will screw off independently of the top and then you can use a SpigotMaster SM01.125 on the top part without even removing the set screw.
VERY informative. I WAS about to have a plumber free estimate for this job.... BUMP THAT!!! Easy task.
Don't use an impact on the set screw. You will have better luck using a wrench and lightly tapping IF needed. An impact is much more likely to snap the head off because you can't control the force of the impact very precisely.
Just ordered these. Brand new house....both faucets leak.
Thanx for posting. But I have to admit...I hate Hate HATE you guys that have all of the tools that you need ready and within easy reach for a project! I am so unorganized!!!!
😂 I'm not always so organized. Lol
Hello. Thanks for the video. Why can’t you just connect the hose directly to the spigot? Why need the spigotmaster piece?
won't fit. these Arrowhead spigots are designed to be a different size than what hoses/timers fit, so that you can't put a hose on it, only their vacuum breaker.
Good video. But, you're using your channel locks backwards. Also, the spigotmaster sells for $16.00. A whole new hose bibb without the anti siphon valve is only $6 - $10 at Lowes. It's a little more involved to replace, but a lot cheaper.
Often homes with these types of spigot have PEX or soldered copper pipes which require tearing into the wall to replace.
Can this be causing the horribly loud noise forcing me to turn the pressure up all the way?
Great info! I did what you did today, but for some reason it still leaks.. I have tightened it well, but as I hook up the garden hose and turned it on, it would leak by the top of the spigot. Any thoughts?
You used the washer right?
Is so, check the mating surfaces for scratches or nicks.
@@TrailerDayz ooof... I guess when I first tried to unscrew and didnt know anything about the lock screw inside.. I was twisting it back and forth.. I guess it damaged the threading a bit. I assume I now need go replace the bib?
@@rayster85 if just the threads are messed up, you might just be hitting the bad threads. You can use a file to fix the threads enough to screw it on tight
@@TrailerDayz I will do that later this evening. Its scorching hot right now in Texas. 109 degrees! Thank you for the advice!
When you started unscrewing the backflow preventer without dealing with the setscrew I cringed. I knew what was going to happen and it did. Either carefully drill the setscrew out or use a Dremel tool with a cutoff wheel to notch the setscrew so you can use a flat screwdriver to remove it. I also use pipe dope instead of RTV to reinstall the preventer.
In trying to connect my hose there and doesn't work right it leaks all over. Any ideas?
I hadn't removed my water hoses from the faucets in years and they seemed welded together. I finally sprayed the connection areas with WD40 for three days in a row and then waited a week and they came off easily. Just thought I'd share that.
Now that you've got the hose off, you should be installing a vacuum breaker to protect you & your neighborhood from water contamination. If you do not have a vacuum breaker, and you leave your garden hose filling, or even sitting in a soapy bucket, a mud puddle, swimming pool etc, and the pressure drops even slightly in the city mainline for any reason, you will end up drinking whatever your garden hose is sitting in because it will suck up whatever is at the other end of your hose and it will enter the drinking water supply. It's the same exact principal as siphoning gas out of a car and the exact reason why these vacuum breakers were invented. If you want to get sick from water contamination, possibly poison your neighbors & possibly be fined by local authorities for willingly contaminating the potable water supply, then go ahead and leave your home unprotected against backflow/back siphonage. Google backflow or back-siphonage water contamination cases if you don't believe me. Thousands of people have gotten extremely sick & hundreds have died from not following proper backflow prevention measures, and your "paranoid city officials" are trying to prevent you ignorant people from getting sick or dying.
@@RioSyler2010 any body still drinking from a pipe does not care about their health enough. god only knows what is in our water. thats why people people buy bottled water these days. the only thing you should use your hose for is to water your plants. not drink from a hose. thats at your own risk whether or not your neighbor or you have a breaker. they are useless.
@@laughingRain I hate to break it to you, but the water that comes out of your outdoor spigot is the exact same water that comes out of your faucets in your home. Literally no difference. Unless you live somewhere that has a boil water order, or your home runs on well water, tap water is perfectly safe to drink.
@@RioSyler2010 who said I didn't have a vacuum breaker already
I have one that is leaking and of course the set screw is behind the spigot on the house side, how would you attack the screw when it is in this position? The preventer will not turn at all. Thx.
See if you can get a Dremel tool with a cutoff wheel back there and cut a slit into it.
@@TrailerDayz Thanks, that did work although I was a little leery but I was able to cut it on both sides of the screw and tap it away from the spigot to loosen the tension enough to turn it off. And the threads on the spigot match my hose....win-win!
It's as simple as this; If the end of your attached hose has fluid in it,while the spigot valve is open, it will siphon back into the house if the pressure drops lower than that of the hose.
For instance, you're using the mist setting on your sprayer and the pressure drops from the city, the hose will shrink back a bit and force water back in the house.
The most likely event is a hose left out that is then driven over by a vehicle, this will dramatically increase the pressure in the hose forcing the water back into the house piping.
Worst case scenario someone is filling their pool when the power goes out and the water pressure drops, the pool water can siphon back if the end of the hose is submerged.
These events have occurred before and do represent a threat large enough to warrant some cheap backflow preventers, regardless of how annoying they are to you.
Now if you have a well and only risk harming your family, then sure go ahead and remove them. But don't risk poisoning others in a community.
skoronesa I’m mean, they’re cool and all, but I can’t use my pressure washer to clean the house and car with that back pressure thing.
Also, there are a lot of people with backyard gardens who use fertilizer and herbicide injectors attached to the bibbs. I don't want fish emulsion in my kitchen or bath water.
@@ivanrodriguez5130 Why exactly?
Used a grinder but this is prolly better
Just an FYI for anyone else dealing with this stupid thing who doesn't want another backflow device, there's a quick release adapter in the garden hose section at Lowe's that worked perfectly on my Arrowhead, no need to spend over twice as much ordering one.
Does the quick release adapter have FINE threads to match my spigot?
Why would you put an adaptor on an the existing outlet thread connection, and end up with exact similar thread connection?
+Marino Argenti I asked myself that same question. I broke my pipe trying to take off the valve that was really old and my plumber installed everything and put on a that vacuum breaker. Every time I use my hose now that has a gun attachment water squirts out when I release and I hear a noise in my pipes. So I took off the vacuum breaker and just connected my hose to the spigot. Problem solved.........If you have your hose off the ground or have a gun attached to it how is it possible for water to get in.
the thread pattern is different.
@@JustinCrediblename, it's not on mine. I can connect my hose directly.
I've always hated these things. We didn't have these on our house in the 70s as I was growing up. WTF? Were we poisoned by our neighbors? lol Only problem with changing these out, they will have to be brought up to code when selling the place. Not that its that expensive.
Hi I just saw this video and I think this may help. I have a question for you though. My house is 3 years old new and the pressure on my outside spickets is terrible. Both spickets have the vacuum breakers on them. If I remove them will this increase the pressure so that I can at least wash my cars properly? I can pee harder than what I have now. The pressure inside the home is perfect. All of my neighbors have the same problem I do. Any advice would be helpful. PS. the Plummer's must have broken off the set screw too. So I'm sure I'll have to drill it out; however, I want to check with you to see if the pressure will improve by removing the vacuum breaker. Thank you, Nick
The vacuum breaker does restrict flow. Replacing with a SpigotMaster will be a straight-through connection allowing all of the flow available to the spigot.
@@SpaDayz , thank you for your fast response. So the breaker doesn't restrict flow? This is the first house that I have had one of those breakers on it and the pressure is not great but I'll buy the Spigotmaster and give it a shot. Also last question, my breaker does unscrew like yours in the video with the broken screw in it. Do you think I should just unscrew it or should I take the next step and drill it out? Thanks again. Nick
@@nickorlando8261 The breaker Does restrict flow.
If your breaker Does unscrew then you don't need to worry about the set screw.
@@SpaDayz great thank you. I must have read your first comment incorrectly. Thx
I asked myself that same question. I broke my pipe trying to take off the valve that was really old and my plumber installed everything and put on a that vacuum breaker. Every time I use my hose now that has a gun attachment water squirts out when I release and I hear a noise in my pipes. So I took off the vacuum breaker and just connected my hose to the spigot. Problem solved.........If you have your hose off the ground or have a gun attached to it how is it possible for water to get in.
go take a corse in Cross Connection, then you'll understand how things are possible.
You drive everyday and don't crash, but you still wear seatbelt, right? shit happens, sometimes, and maybe even rarely, but it does happen sometimes. don't remove safeties.
Daddy Michael ... Please protect me ..
@@TheFiscallySound I'll help you Lassie! Bringing my channel locks over.
There are reasons why backflows are required. People have pumped chemicals into the municipal water systems before. In many cities, commercial backflow preventers are required to be registered, tested/certified yearly. Residential settings are lower risk but it doesn't mean it won't happen. All it takes is someone using something like a faulty pressure washer with chemicals to pump poison into other peoples water supply.
Indeed. They serve a purpose. The design is faulty and expensive to replace for the average homeowner. If removed, it is always recommended to add an inexpensive one from the hardware store downstream.
I Googled and was not able to find an example of chemicals or anything else backflowing into a public water system.
Go put your garden hose in a bucket of chemicals and then go it the house and open up with kitchen sink spigot a few minutes later and drink the water. You'll learn real quick the purpose the the back-flow preventor. Having been in the pest control business for years, it was common to observe tech's filling up there spray rigs in the back of the work trucks. It only took once of someone having the end of the hose below the water level in the spray rig and then having the customers washer suck about 5 gal. of termiticide into her washer. It was not a good day. Most state Pest control industry now require a air-gap or back flow device on the spray rigs and if one is caught without it there is a heft fine. People have to realize yes they are a pain in the azz but they are designed to protect the health of the public.
@@thebubbacontinuum2645 Try improving your Google skills. Like I already said, most cities consider backflow prevention to be serious business. You're lucky most cities allow residents to get away with a single check valve on the hose bibb. In commercial applications, it's a minimum double check valve or an RP backflow preventer. Both usually require registration and annual certification that costs way more money.
@@thebubbacontinuum2645 that’s because vacuum breakers are working.
My method, grab a hack saw and make a cut down eacb side of the back flow preventer until you hit the thread cuts, then take a flat blade screwdriver and open the cut, the brass will give, at this point the valve will comer off easily. Take you time and pay attention to what you are doing and you won’t damage the threads. At this point I’ll dress the threads with a thread die made for hose bibs.
Do I really need the spigot master? Wouldn’t I be able to screw the hose onto the threads that you screwed the spigot master onto?
It depends on your Spigot. Many have special threads.
I had the exact same question.
The thread on the spigot is pipe thread (not hose thread) so you will need the adaptor in order for your hose to be able to connect
I got mine off without much problem, but it seems to have F'ed up the threading. Now I can't get the spigot master threaded on the spigot! Ideas??
You might be able to cut a slit in the threads of the old adapter and use it to help cut and true the threads on the spigot.
Ours is don’t have that screw or allen head screw. You got an idea how to remove it?
I used a dremel and slowly cut a V into it until I could break off a chuck with pliers and then took a wrench and unscrewed it. I did cut into the spigot thread a bit so be very careful.
Many people have a water hose connected, and leave the supply valve open, with a spray gun attached at the other end. Many hoses are not suitable for potable water. When water is used else-ware in the house, with no anti-back flow valve in place at the water spigot, and the pressure in the system becomes less than what is stored in the water hose, guess what happens?
The scenarios where a backflow preventer has been useful are so far fetched. They just don't happen! Just a move by somebody to make money by inventing a useless piece of crap that is now required under many plumbing codes.
@@dddhhh2612 When I turn on the water in my house I can see water spraying out of my faucet's protector outside. Useless is right! I want to drink that soiled chemicalled water for nutrients.
@@dddhhh2612 When I moved to a new house I had a nasty plastic taste to my water. At first I thought it was the PEX piping. Quickly figured out I needed one of these on my garden spigot, ever since I put it in the nasty taste is gone.
Lots of flames! Consider this; if the hose does not contact the ground or standing water, what contamination would be drawn back into the lines?
Well that's the point...most people are not so neat. The hose is generally lying on the ground.
I bought the very device you mentioned in your video. I am so happy with it.
It was sooo hard to find a regular hose bib without the stupid silcock or anti siphon components. Mine just stopped working completely and I had to order a standard bib online and I put a shutoff valve at the connection to main water supply so if it gets extremely cold I’m fine it’s not going to freeze the line 10 inches into the house. Pain in my ass I freaking hate the damn anti siphon or silcock bibs at least it’s out of my life 🙌🏽
Will this work if the spigot sprays water while turning off when a hose is connected?
Yes it will. Here is a video to help make sure it will fit your spigot. :
czcams.com/video/oVn1bwbcMCI/video.html
Thank you!!
Does is it matter if the outside line is separate from the house water line
The 2 lines are separated by the spigot.
Why even use the spigot master and why not connect the hose straight to the spigot? My back flow preventers are both faulty in front and back of my house. I want to get rid of them and your video is helpful. I just don’t get the purpose of the spigot master is for?
The spigot has special, proprietary threads. Take your old ones off and see if your do as well
I had no idea this was a thing. The house I bought has these things on all the spigots. I tried turning on a hose to spray the gutters. I'd say i got maybe 50% of the pressure at the end of the hose... the rest just spewed from the valve.
Yeah. It is a horrible design and expensive to replace.
What's makes them expensive to replace? The parts or does a plumber have to be super nonsensically certified to use a pipe wrench?
@@r99pinball24 They are designed to be non-removeable with a set screw that is broken off. They are also $35 each compared to the ones you can get for normal garden hose threads which are $5 and readily available.
Funny how upset people get over things. For the record, You should in fact use a food grade silicone for this repair, not Ultra-Black as I show in the video. You should only do this in situations that require a constant water feed using a drinking water safe hose (Such as feeding an RV from a house supply line in which case the RV becomes an extension of the house water system).
To set things straight:
Yes these backflow preventers do serve a valid purpose if on a city water system. If you are on well or your own supply, they are less likely to serve any purpose at all because there is not much on the system like a fire hydrant that can create enough backflow to suck water in through the hose. The spigots demonstrated on are on a house fed by a well.
Only perform this modification if you understand the above.
Now relax everyone and take a deep breath!
Hi TrailerDayz Love the video. I have a cool update for you: Arrowhead makes 2 different sizes of spigots and there are now TWO different sizes of Spigot Master to fit each size: SM01 for the 1" size and the SM01.125 for the slightly larger size Arrowhead Spigot. Interestingly, if you cannot remove that top piece of the vacuum breaker with the set screw, you can remove the larger bottom piece of the vacuum breaker and directly attach the SM01.125 Spigot Master to the remaining piece: it is a perfect fit!
It's as simple as this; If the end of your attached hose has fluid in it,while the spigot valve is open, it will siphon back into the house if the pressure drops lower than that of the hose. For instance, you're using the mist setting on your sprayer and the pressure drops from the city, the hose will shrink back a bit and force water back in the house. The most likely event is a hose left out that is then driven over by a vehicle, this will dramatically increase the pressure in the hose forcing the water back into the house piping. Worst case scenario someone is filling their pool when the power goes out and the water pressure drops, the pool water can siphon back if the end of the hose is submerged. These events have occurred before and do represent a threat large enough to warrant some cheap backflow preventers, regardless of how annoying they are to you. Now if you have a well and only risk harming your family, then sure go ahead and remove them. But don't risk poisoning others in a community.
@@skoronesa1 Screw your backflow preventers. They SUCK.
@@jackstraw5940 My backflow preventer(one) works great. I have a single, full size backflow preventer feeding all of my hose spigots.
But I am a plumber and not some child who has no idea what he's talking about.
It doesn't take the pressure of a fire hydrant to cause backflow/back siphonage. Yes, an open hydrant and water main shut-offs are the main causes in a home, but all it takes is the pressure in the water main to drop even slightly lower than the pressure in your tap, and backflow/back-siphonage can occur. Look at siphoning gas. That doesn't take a lot of pressure, but that gas will siphon & keep on flowing. Same as your hose...it will suck up anything your hose end is sitting in, including pesticides, fertilizers, animal urine, and insects from puddles in your yard, soapy water, pool water, you name it! It's the whole reason these vacuum breakers were invented.
I recently got a new hose and I leave the hose pressure on and have a ball valve on the far end.
I started tasting vinyl in my water and now I want to prevent backflow.
Pat McBride OK. Use a backflow preventer.... Or, you could just not leave your hose on.
You should turn off your water tap & empty your hose every time you're finished using it because it's a breeding ground for bacteria. You are the first person here besides me to be aware of backflow! People don't realize that if you do not have a vacuum breaker at the spigot, and you leave your garden hose filling, or even sitting in a soapy bucket, a mud puddle, swimming pool etc, and the pressure drops even slightly in the city mainline for any reason, you will end up drinking whatever your garden hose is sitting in because it will suck up whatever is at the other end of your hose and it will enter the drinking water supply. It's the same exact principal as siphoning gas out of a car and the exact reason why these vacuum breakers were invented. If they want to get sick from water contamination, possibly poison their neighbors & possibly be fined by local authorities for willingly contaminating the potable water supply, they should go ahead and leave their homes unprotected against backflow/back-siphonage like this guy wants everyone to do. Google backflow or back-siphonage water contamination cases if you don't believe me. Thousands of people have gotten extremely sick & hundreds have died from not following proper backflow prevention measures, and "paranoid city officials" are trying to prevent people from getting sick or dying.
@@RioSyler2010 I just installed a vacuum break and the problem went away.
BTW, all those houses with plastic pipes are not getting the benefit of copper's antibacterial action.
you should not be drinking pipe tap water. it has flouride in it and it's not safe. get a water purifier for your sink or buy your drinking water is my advice. and also there are other suggestions here to consider, such as the $5 replacement, because if you're going to use one of these they have to be replaced now and then. thats why we don't want to fool with them.
@@laughingRain Not necessarily true. Most cities have gone away from fluoride in the water. My city of approx 200,000 doesn't use fluoride anymore. Besides, people drank fluorinated water for years with less issues than one will get from the bacteria that grows in garden hoses or the contamination that occurs from backflow/back-siphonage.
OMG thank you for this. I didn't even know what the fuck a backflow preventer was before this video. I just knew my outdoor spigot was leaking something bad and there were these extra parts on the spigot. I was ready to just replace the whole damn thing until I watched this. I was able to remove the bottom part of the arrowhead backflow prevent and instead of fucking around with the set screw, I ordered the SM01.125. And to everyone freaking out about this, if you do this on your home, you can still put on a new backflow preventer but now you can use standard size rather than arrowheads weird sizing. And when the new one fails is just a $5 replacement.
Glad I could help!
If you remove the backflow preventer, how do you prevent backflow from contaminating the larger water supply in a sudden low-pressure incident, for example if an area is flooded and the hose end is in the water?
You should install a cheaper vacuum breaker downstream of the spigot somewhere. This is mainly for people who live in hardwater areas and need to replace it every year or so. A $5 vacuum breaker available at the hardware store is a much better option than a $35 special order one from the manufacturer.
Preventer is literally fossilized on my porch spigot won’t even turn by hand now so just gonna hit it with penetrating catalyst and hope rust/paint gets eaten away😢
It would be easier to use a cut off wheel on that - then spread it apart and remove.
I don’t have a set screw, it’s completely smooth and leaks like crazy. How do I remove it?! I have little hands, I’m not strong, I don’t have someone else to help and I can’t afford to hire someone. Also, did you somehow turn off the water somewhere else before you started this? If I unscrew the handle, water comes out
I used a dremel and slowly cut a V into it until I could break off a chuck with pliers and then took a wrench and unscrewed it. I did cut into the spigot thread a bit so be very careful.
@@Hair4Thought Thanks :). I eventually got it with more torque
What causes the humming noises? Defective backflow preventer?
Yes, defective and even cheap replacement vacuum Breakers can hum even if they don't leak.
These are actually useful for older people who pay less attention where they drop the end of the hose when they are done watering, for example.
Although I did learn some I find that you failed to mention that some plumbers drilled a hole through the threads before installing the break-away screw. If you take this thing off there is no way to seal it, forcing the replacement of the faucet. Also, putting RTV on wet threads does no good, it won’t stick.
The sealing mechanism of both the vacuum breaker and the Spigotmaster adapter is a rubber washer which seals the end, not the threads. As long as you can clean up the threads a bit and screw the adapter on, it will seal.
I no longer recommend RTV. I would use loctite now personally.
TrailerDayz as I said before some plumbers drilled the spigot through the threads before installing the break-away screw. When this happens you can either replace the spigot or fill the hole with epoxy then shape the threads on the part.
Jb weld will fix that, I had that exact situation.
@@TrailerDayz Any comment on what version of loctite to use? I'm super ignorant on this whole topic, but I googled and arrived at probably Loctite 545? Says it's for "for locking and sealing metal pipes and small fittings with fine threads" which seems accurate. I thoughtlessly bought Loctite Blue 242 because it was recommended by Amazon when buying the SpigotMaster but then I looked at the packaging and it seemed like it was for a different purpose.
@@Lessen0 Pretty much either one will work. If you already have it, go ahead and use it.
I agree that those vacuum breakers are a huge pain in the ass when they need to be replaced, I ended up having to dremel a large chunk of the vacuum breaker just to get it off.
I understand the frustration of removing it and the apprehension to put a new one on, but keep in mind that they do actually serve an important purpose and really shouldn't be defeated if you can avoid it. The solution is quite simple; don't install the setscrew on your new vacuum breaker. If it goes bad (as you've indicated every 5-10yrs), simply twist it off and thread a new one one. It's a $5 part to keep your plumbing within code, there's almost no excuse not to put a new one on.
You wouldn't bypass a fuse on your electrical panel despite the fact that doing so probably won't burn your house down, so why do the same with your plumbing?
1n5ane1 More like a $30 part....
If you live in a hard water area you are lucky to get 3 years.
The Arrowhead dual-stage design is badly implemented and poorly designed. This is why they have moved to an internal/integrated design.... Only after selling millions of these dual stage spigots under code mandates.
People needing an always-on connection to a watering timer can't rely on this poor design.
Yes, anyone who is on a city water system, who leaves their hose spigot open with a hose attached (especially if using it to fill a pool or pond) should not go without a vacuum breaker. In those cases a $5 one attached before the hose is ideal and easily replaceable.
@@TrailerDayz thats good advice. and try just one year of use on my two and you'll know why I found your video so helpful. I just couldn't understand why they would make it so hard to replace this thing, or remove it. its like being caught in the matrix with no choices left. AZ has very hard water.
@@laughingRain Exactly!
My little grand child can make that 😂😂😂😂
These things only seem to run up the price of home ownership, and do nothing helpful. Why? Because if the valve we call a faucet keeps the water from leaving the house, doesn't it follow that the same valve prevents water from coming in? The pressure pushing OUT would surely over power any siphon condition bringing water IN.
EXACTLY!
There are very few instances wherein the water pressure drops enough to suck water back into the house, and in most of those cases, it's a tiny bit of hose water (which we all drank as kids and is just vinyl}.
Did the garden hose not just fit on the spigot , assuming it’s the same size, they are all standard.
Nope. Different thread.
TrailerDayz Thanks it’s hard to tell from the video. Cheers
I get the point of these backflow valves... in theory... but unless you have a habit of leaving your garden hose in your swimming pool, what exactly are you preventing? Even then, you take a drink of water and think “hmm. That tastes a little funny. Kinda like chlorine. You know, there was a fire a few miles from here today. Must have been a bit of backflow.” Then you go turn all your faucets on for about 15 min and your entire house will be filled with clean water again. Pretty simple. We had to go and create this stupid “anti-backflow faucet adapter” because we haven’t figured out a way to fix stupid people yet. The product is simply faulty. It doesn’t last long, leaks like crazy, and after it ages, when a vacuum is out on the line, they fail half the time anyways. Like all things, it requires maintenance, but it’s really still inferior to just using a little common sense when it comes to the old fashioned (and better) water spigots.
Lastly, all of this is to keep the water in your house safe to drink, right? How many of you have done a litmus test on the water in your homes? Most city water supplies are disgusting. It’s water pulled from local and often polluted water supplies and then purified by chemicals. If you’re drinking that shit without at least filtering it through a Brita or Pūr water filter first, you’re crazy and a “anti-backflow adapter” is the least of your worries.
Will the spigot master still make that humming noise?? We just replaced a breaker that hasn't worked since we moved in so this obnoxious humming is a new and dreadful experience!
Yes. The humming is a result of a failing stage in the 2 stage breaker setup.
@@TrailerDayz oh boy. Is there a reason for the failure ? I JUST replaced it with a new one yesterday!
@@heatherj00788 I had that happen once. Maybe it was defective. I got rid of it after that.
@@heatherj00788 Just to clarify, the SpigotMaster will not hum because it is a straight through connection.
@@TrailerDayz thank you so much for the info!
People poison their neighbors this way
Would this likely fail a home inspection?
It depends on the building codes in your region. I'd bet most would not even look twice at it unless they worked for the city.
@@TrailerDayz If you did need a vacuum breaker, with SpigotMaster you can now attach a very reasonably priced one that attach to regular garden hose 3/4" fitting on the SpigotMaster male end.
Uuum..YES