Is it safe to trim away deck wood around my faucet?

[Paul in Maryland]

The faucet below my deck is leaking badly. But the cutout that exposed the faucet is too small to get my hand in and turn; to install the U-adapter and hose, I had to hire a less claustrophobic handyman to crawl under the deck and screw them in from below.
I want to trim away some of the surrounding wood to give my hand and wrench some wiggle room. My wife fears that the deck could collapse.
Can I safely trim off, say. a half-inch of wood on all three sides shown here?

 

[bud16415]

I would remove the hose bibb and put a 90 on then add a 12”-18” nipple straight up then another 90 and then the new hose bibb. This will get it up where it will be able to be used and will be a lot simpler than trying to carve more out of the structure.

 

[joecaption]

#1, That's not even a freeze proof shut off.
If it was mine I'd be getting rid of that one and relocating the whole thing in a better location and this time installing a freeze proof one.
If you did as Bud suggest you would have to also add a tee and another shutoff to be able to drain the water out in the fall.

 

[bud16415]

#1, That's not even a freeze proof shut off.
If it was mine I'd be getting rid of that one and relocating the whole thing in a better location and this time installing a freeze proof one.
If you did as Bud suggest you would have to also add a tee and another shutoff to be able to drain the water out in the fall.

I thought about that but we have no idea where the OP lives or if he has a basement with a shut off down there and if it is a shut off that has a drain bleeder or not.



The decking looks pretty new but the hose bibb and that U shaped thing look like it has been around a few seasons maybe it did freeze and that’s why it is leaking.



I agree the long freeze proof ones are the only ones I use any more and even those you have make sure you remove any splitter valves and such people attach to the end before the first hard freeze.



I did something similar last year. She wanted water on the front porch to water all her hanging baskets and to use her As Seen on TV shrinking hose. I installed a freeze proof bibb thru the basement wall and then up on the porch I mounted a regular hose bibb like the OP has thru one of the posts and then made a short jumper hose to connect the two. Now I only have to crawl into the bushes twice a year spring and fall and to remember to disconnect that hose before a freeze.

Here are a couple pictures the OP could do something similar maybe.

 

[Paul in Maryland]

Thanks, guys. You've persuaded me to leave the wood uncut and hire a specialist to reconfigure the faucet's location, angle, and so on.
I live in Maryland. The plastic U attachment is probably 15 years old.

 

[bud16415]

Thanks, guys. You've persuaded me to leave the wood uncut and hire a specialist to reconfigure the faucet's location, angle, and so on.
I live in Maryland. The plastic U attachment is probably 15 years old.

If you hire it done tell them you want a quarter turn valve. Not only do they hold up better they are much easier to open and close than the gate valve type like you have that take several full turns to operate.



The freeze proof type come in both types.



Also keep in mind the freeze proof valves only work if there is nothing attached to them over the winter. Even the quick connect adapters will hold water with the valve off and will cause the outside part to freeze and break. Don’t ask me how I know this.



As to removing more wood to make it a little easier to get down there open and shut the valve if you end up doing something like I showed above. In your photo the chunk of wood to the right against the brick isn’t doing anything as far as I can see and one wack with a chisel from below would knock that off and give you double the hand room. It will still be tight trying to remove the jumper hose but if you removed it from the higher valve like I have in the fall and let it fall under the deck it would drain without taking it off down there. In the spring just pull the short hose back up and connect it and turn the new valve a quarter turn.



If you have a basement then you could get away without any of this messing around and rig it down there to have a shut off and then a Tee with a drain valve with a bucket to catch the little water going out the wall. They were done that way for years and you may already have that setup in the basement.

No one older wants to get on their knees and reach down in a hole every time they want to use the water. When I was doing mine I was thinking the whole time I’m spending 4 hours adding an outside faucet and all this to save a few minutes every other day watering some plants. Now that it is done it is funny how some of the simplest of things makes life that much easier and I’m glad I did it and now have it right forever.

 

[Jeff Handy]

If there is a kitchen or bathroom along that same wall, on the ground floor, you might be able to tap into the cold water line under a sink or vanity.

Then you can mount a freeze proof anti siphon sillcock, that would be a foot or so above the deck height.