The photo is hard to understand without some explanation. During the last cold spell, we had this pipe that was our outdoor spigot freeze up. The pipe cracked and when I turned the water on it shot out. I have the repair parts but I am waiting for the CPCV glue to put it back together the right way.
I don't know who installed this pipe, but the faucet wobbled back and forth, and I was afraid when someone would turn it to hard it would break off at the pipe. The spigot was not attached to anything and was just floating free at the end of the pipe. It was boxed in, but when I took the box out (as seen by the photo - where it is cut out from the deck- it was just a hollow box with zero insulation.
Not only was it void of any insulation but there were numerous couplings where it had been repaired several times in the past. The small white pipe down below the deck is where the water feed comes out for the outside fixture. I can't believe that someone thought just putting the pipe in a wooden box and not securing the spigot would keep the pipe from freezing or breaking.
In addition to that there was a drain valve below the box that when you would open the water from inside the basement it would spray all over you when you closed the outside valve. If you could actually reach it to open it. I will extend the drain lower where it is more reachable and put a diverter on it where the water will be directed away from the person who is draining the system and not on them.
I shouldn't be surprised at the poorly installed plumbing as when we first moved here the pipes froze and when I checked the outdoor shut off valve it was just lying on the ground when normally they are buried below the freeze line. Someone had just piled rocks on top of it to protect it. I made a box of closed cell 2" foam insulation to enclose it and ran a brood lamp to it with a temperature control, and it has not frozen again.
We are discovering defects one by one and making necessary repairs as needed.
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