Outside Garden Tap Installation Specialists

verified Professional Service calendar_month Pick a Time That Suits You
history Typical Duration 1.5 Hours
category Service Category Plumbing
payments Starting Price From £90

Service Overview

We fit a tap to an outside wall and feed it from the cold supply inside the house, often the pipe under the kitchen sink, with the wall drilled through and sealed round the pipe.

A garden hose can draw water back into the house's pipes: left in a pond, a water butt or a bucket of weedkiller, it can siphon that water into the drinking supply. Water Regs UK puts a hose used for watering a garden or washing a car in fluid category 3, which a double check valve protects against. We fit it indoors, next to a shut-off valve for winter, because one fitted outdoors can freeze and fail.

We charge £90 an hour for this work, with a one-hour minimum; after the first hour, time is billed in 30-minute blocks. Pick a time that suits you online: a £50 deposit secures your slot and comes off the final bill.

What we usually find

  • An old tap with no backflow protection. Water Regs UK lists the ways to add it: a double check valve indoors on the tap's feed, a tap with one built in, or a device screwed onto the outlet.
  • A tap or pipe split by frost. Water left standing in the tap and in the pipe through the wall freezes and expands, and WaterSafe warns that this can crack and burst them.
  • A cracked valve inside the tap. Some garden taps carry their check valve in the tap body, where Water Regs UK notes it is prone to freezing and failing.
  • No way to shut the tap off on its own. Without a valve indoors, draining it for winter means turning off the water to the whole house.

The visit, step by step

  1. We find the nearest cold pipe to where the tap will go, and check the wall for cables and pipes before drilling.
  2. We drill through the wall and run the pipe through, sealing round it on both sides.
  3. We fit the shut-off valve and the double check valve indoors, and the tap on a wall plate outside.
  4. With the water back on, we run the tap, check every joint inside and out, and insulate the pipe where it is exposed.

Before we arrive

  • Choose where on the wall you want the tap. A spot close to the kitchen keeps the pipe inside short.
  • Clear the cupboard under the sink, and anything against the wall on both sides.
  • Show us the wall. A photo of the outside wall and one of the pipes under the sink, added to your booking, show us the route the pipe will take.

What is included

  • A new outside tap connected to the cold supply
  • Drilling the wall and sealing round the pipe
  • Backflow protection and a shut-off valve, fitted indoors
  • Insulating the exposed pipe
  • Adding backflow protection to an existing tap that has none

Questions about outside garden tap installation

Should I turn my outside tap off in winter? expand_more
Yes. WaterSafe's advice is to disconnect the hose, shut off the outside supply if you can and drain the tap, and fit an insulating cover. The shut-off valve we fit indoors is there for this: close it, then open the tap outside to let the water out.
Can I fill a pond or a hot tub from an outside tap? expand_more
Not from one protected only by a double check valve. Water Regs UK classes a hose used to refill a pond, a swimming pool, a spa bath or a hot tub as fluid category 5, the highest risk, unless your water company assesses it otherwise, so ask your water company before you do.

Deposits, cancelling and paying are on our FAQ page.

Worth doing in the same visit

Kitchen Plumbing from £90 Gutter Clearing from £60

Areas we cover

Ashtead Banstead Cheam Chessington Cobham Dorking Epsom Esher Guildford Kingston upon Thames Leatherhead Molesey New Malden Reigate Richmond Surbiton Sutton Twickenham Walton-on-Thames & Weybridge Wimbledon Worcester Park & Ewell
Zapryan - Owner & Lead Plumber
Your Local Expert

Hi, I'm Zapryan – Owner & Lead Plumber in Surrey

I've been in the construction industry since 2004, and I believe the secret to stress-free renovations is simple: turn up on time, manage the trades properly, and do the job right the first time. I personally survey every project and work alongside our teams on-site until the final checklist is complete. You'll always have a direct line to me, and my personal guarantee that the work is finished to perfection.