Frost-free outdoor taps: what they are and how to protect a garden tap

An outside tap freezes because water sits in a pipe that runs through a cold wall. When that water turns to ice it can split the tap body or the pipe, and the leak often shows up only when it thaws. There are two ways to deal with that: a tap designed so no water sits outside, or an ordinary tap that you protect and drain each winter.

Two different things called "frost-free"

A true frost-free (frost-proof) tap has its shut-off valve at the end of a long stem, inside the heated part of the house. When you turn it off, the water left in the stem drains out of the spout. Nothing is left standing in the cold part of the wall. These are common in colder countries. Check carefully before buying: many products sold in the UK as "frost" or "anti-freeze" taps are ordinary bib taps with a different handle or a cover.

A standard garden tap (a bib tap on a wall plate) holds water right up to the outside. It can be protected well enough for most UK winters with:

• an isolating valve inside the house on the pipe to the tap, so you can shut it off and drain the outside section;
• a double check valve inside the house, where the regulations need one (see below), protected from freezing;
• pipe lagging on any length of pipe in an unheated space or the wall;
• an insulated frost cover over the tap itself.

When we checked Wickes on 13 November 2026, it sold garden tap kits, taps with integral double check valves and frost covers. We did not find a long-stem frost-free tap there. The products below are for the second approach.

Backflow: why the check valve matters

A hose left in a bucket, a pond or a weedkiller sprayer can siphon dirty water back into the drinking water supply if pressure drops. The Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999 apply in England and Wales, and they require suitable backflow protection. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own water fittings rules, so check with your water supplier there.

Water Regs UK covers hose union taps treated as a fluid category 3 risk, which is how a hose union tap in a house garden is usually treated. Its guidance says that in premises built after 1 July 1999, if a double check valve is used as point-of-use backflow protection for such a tap, it "must be installed inside the property and if required protected from freezing".

So for a newer installation, a tap with a check valve built into its outdoor body is not, on its own, the arrangement that guidance describes. Fit the double check valve inside, on the supply pipe.

For existing taps without backflow protection, the WRAS installation note IRN R060 sets out options for existing house installations. They include fitting a double check valve to the existing tap's supply inside the building, or replacing the tap with a hose union tap that incorporates a double check valve. Read the note itself for the exact valve types.

Fitting outline

Most people get a plumber to do this. If you are competent with plumbing, the general shape of the job is:

1. Pick a route that keeps the pipe as short as possible in the cold wall, and falls slightly towards the outside so it can drain.
2. Turn off the water at the stopcock and drain the pipe you are cutting into. See finding your stopcock.
3. Fit an isolating valve and a double check valve inside the house, somewhere you can reach and that will not freeze.
4. Take the pipe through the wall, sleeve it, and seal the hole.
5. Fit the wall plate and tap, using thread tape or a sealant suitable for drinking water.
6. Turn the water on, check every joint inside and out for weeps, and check the tap shuts off fully.

Many "garden tap kits" connect with a self-cutting connector that clamps onto an existing 15mm copper pipe. Follow the kit maker's instructions to the letter, and still consider where the double check valve sits.

Winter drain-down

1. Unscrew any hose and connector from the tap. A hose left on traps water in the tap.
2. Close the indoor isolating valve.
3. Open the outside tap and leave it open so the outer section drains.
4. If there is a drain-off point on the inside, use it as well.
5. Fit a frost cover over the tap and check any lagging is intact.

In spring, close the outside tap, open the indoor valve slowly, and look for leaks before you rely on it again.

Products at Wickes and Amazon

We haven't tested these. They are examples, with what the retailer's page says.

We haven't tested this. Figures are as the maker states them (checked 13 November 2026).

Is a tap with a built-in check valve enough?

For a new installation in premises built after 1 July 1999, Water Regs UK guidance says a double check valve used as point-of-use protection for a category 3 hose union tap must be inside the property. A check valve in the outdoor tap body does not meet that on its own. For an existing tap, WRAS IRN R060 lists replacing it with a tap that incorporates a double check valve as one option.

How do I stop an outside tap freezing?

Shut it off from inside, drain it, remove the hose, and fit an insulated cover. Lag any pipe that runs through cold spaces.

Can I fit an outside tap myself?

If you are competent with plumbing, it is a common job, but the backflow rules still apply. If you are not sure how they apply to your house, ask a plumber or your water company first.