WATER HYDRANT ADVICE !!!!!!!!

[BryanM]

I am going to install 2 frost free water hydrants from my new well. I am seeking some advice: First- what water hydrant would you reccomend? (this is for filling livestock, barn type stuff).

My next question is, I am planning on putting a hydrant inside my pole barn with stone floor, would you pipe the drain weep hole too the outside? or just do basic install with stone at bottom of hydrant?


I know some of you have been down this road and anything you may add on install or what type of material I use would be appreciated!


Some info to help- 1. pump 15gpm 2. frost depth 40 inches 3. clay for soil 4. pipe using 1inch poly pipe (in coil, 100 psi)

 

[jimgerken]

Woodford, made in Iowa. Rebuildable from the top without excavation. Dependable, tough, long lasting. REplaceable jamb packing, with nut.
We always install with a five gallon pail around the valve at the bottom, so after backfill some airspace is created. I think rock would work fine too. I just put one in a building and simply did the pail trick and backfilled it. We also wrap the stand pipe with foam or something before concrete is poured, as you don't want the pipe to bond into the slab. the pipe will not move but the slab will move up and down seasonally with frost (if any in your area). The slab would drag the hydrant up and down over the years, if it was bonded into the concrete, and eventually this will harm the plastic pipe.
Drill or melt a hole in the bottom of a good plastic pail, the size of the valve. Slide this over the valve, up the stand pipe, pail is upside down (open top of pail faces downward). do the connection to the plastic pipe in the ground, stand it and slide the pail down over the valve, carefully backfill around the pail. It may collapse somewhat, but it will still work ok. backfill as normal.

 

[Artisan]

Woodford

 

[Dr Dave]

Iowa Hydrant (Woodford) of coarse. I install with a brass T and barbed fittings for use with black plastic water pipe, if at the end of a run add a 12" stub and cap at opposite end, for support. Make a sleeve out of 4" pcv, cut a U shaped notch at bottom to stradle the pipe T. Install hydrant and backfill around outside off PVC with rock. Cut PVC a couple inches above grade, fill PVC with foam pelets for filling concrete blocks or bean bags. Also forgot add a 4" cap to top off PVC with a hole for hydrant before final asy, do not glue cap on! This alows for hydrant replacement if damaged, just raise cap, vacuum and blow pelets out off hole, unscrew hydrant and install new one. If pooring concrete around PVC wrap it with foam to alow for expansion and contraction.

Dave

 

[MFWD]

Hey BryanM,
I don't know how much you know about hydrants, but there are regular hydrants and there are sanitary hydrants. The sanitary hydrants won't allow water to be sucked back into your water system (particularily important if the hydrant is hooked on to the house supply system) and a lot of counties won't allow you to use any kind but those. It won't always happen, but there are several situations where water can be sucked back into your system and can put bacteria in your house water. The problem is that regular hydrants cost around $100, where the sanitary kind cost $500 or more. You can still be safe and use the regular kind if you install a backflow eliminator in your house water system.........they cost about $150 last time I checked. Like I said, I'm not sure if you know all about this or not, but I'm just trying to be helpful.

MFWD

 

[SPIKER]

When I installed mine I used some 4" pvc in the trench the black pipe is in, it was on one side the pipe on the other, there was 10 foot cut in half with a T in middle gravel all around the ends were capped with standard cap the 4"pvc is the waste type with perforated holes. it basically acts as a catch basin like the 5 gallon buck above but spreads it out more.

I also drove in a hunk of 3/4" rebar to help stabilize it at about midway up. wrapped SS hose clamps to the 4' rebar I tossed on some spray pain on the rebar but probably not required as low 02 shouldn't rust much. mine is out by the garden but my brother did same inside the horse barn at my niece's place. used foam over a heat tape down to about 2feet there is a 5 gallon bucket at the outlet so if you turn it on the bucket catches the water below ground level and filled w gravel out a bit to channel the excess water away from the base of the spigot.

probably all way overkill though...

Mark

 

[turnkey4099]

I learned the hard way: Diassemble the hydrant and reassemble before installing. Dunno what torque they use at the factory but none of mine can be oveerhauled in-situ because I couldn't get enouth force to break the threads loose at top. My well pumps real fine silt and that rendered 4 new frostfrees unusuable in about a 10 year span - impossible to move the handle. I dug up one and replaced it, took the old one apart (it took a leg vice and a 24" pipe wrench to do It) Could find no blockage though.

Harry K

 

[DJ54]

Don't know how far it is from your well, to the hydrants, but here is something to consider I've done with all mine.

Since you are running 1" line, Consider getting 1-1/2" also, and use for conduit for the 1" to go through. If ever the line should fail, just dig up the end at hydrant, and disconnect at the other end, if in a well pit, or whatever, and push another through. We found this out years ago, when we we're lucky to afford the pipe, and hydrant. Digging 100' of ditch, 3' deep by hand is not fun, 3-4 years later.

I'd go ahead and spring for the higher psi pipe. You can use the lower psi for conduit.

Just my 2 cents worth...

 

[DJ54]

Oh yeah... I always put a brass St. el. on the outlet drain of the hydrant. Less chance of a small particle of something drafting back into the valve... I think it is 1/8" pipe...

 

[Willl]

I did a concrete base on mine like so.