SuPeRnOvA and SwEeTpAiN: Plumbing Freebees: How to Fix a Leaky Faucet | SuPeRnOvA and SwEeTpAiN
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Plumbing Freebees: How to Fix a Leaky Faucet

Leaky faucets are annoying. The constant drip—drip—drip of water on porcelain is enough to drive you crazy, never mind all of the money that is literally going down the drain as your water bill slowly escalates. Beyond that, leaky faucets that are not dealt with can cause moisture in the air that can lead to mold. When you have a leaky faucet, the best thing you can do is get it fixed, quickly. While in Santa Monica, plumbing issues can be dealt with by professionals, but fixing a leaky bathroom faucet may be something you can accomplish alone.

How to Fix a Leaky Bathroom Faucet

Many faucets in bathrooms work with a compression washer. While there are some faucets that use different technology, compression faucets are very common. If a compression faucet is leaking, it doesn’t matter how hard you turn the handle, the water will not shut off because the rubber washer that does the compressing is worn out. This washer has to be replaced.

The first thing to do is to shut off the water to the faucet. This is generally accomplished via the under-sink valves, but if you have no valves (you may want to have some installed) you will have to shut off the main water valve in the house.

Once the water is shut off, open the faucet and let any water in the pipes drain. Next, remove the handle on the offending faucet. This is done by carefully prying off the decorative cap and then removing the screw that secures the handle to the valve; be careful not to damage the finish when you do so.

Next, unscrew the packing nut that compresses the valve in place. As a side note: if water is leaking from the handle, it may be that the packing nut is not tight enough, or that it has worn away.
Once the packing nut is removed, unscrew the valve stem, and remove it from the faucet. If it is too difficult to remove, you may want to reattach the handle to help with removal.
Look at the base of the valve and unscrew the brass screw that holds the rubber washer in place. Remove the washer and check for deterioration. Take the washer to the hardware store and find a replacement.

Finally, reassemble in the reverse order of disassembly.


Fixing a leaky compression faucet isn’t too difficult, and the other types of faucet repair are also uncomplicated. Living in Santa Monica, plumbing may become an issue from time to time, but save yourself some money and time by only calling in the professionals for the jobs that are too difficult or time consuming for you to accomplish alone.

20 comments:

  1. Thanks for these tips, as a matter of fact, our sink faucet is leaking so this comes in handy.

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  2. Need tips like this so I can fix our leaks if it's minor.

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  3. I don't want to do the fixing myself coz I'm afraid I might cause greater damage, so since part of our rent goes out to pay for plumbing, fixing stuff etc, I would rather call our handyman and have him fix it... hehehe...

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  4. A very helpful tips for homemakers who wants to repair the damages with their own hands. That's the way to really take good care of home maintenance without spending much money. Great article!

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  5. I should make husband read this post. For once maybe he won't rely on a plumber to fix a leak. Nowadays, plumbers don't come cheap. :-)

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  6. As a health professional, I'm glad you mentioned the inherent dampness and mold problems that come with leaks. That is an often overlooked aspect of this.

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  7. i am the one repairing leaking faucets in our home, once the washer is worn out and i can't find any replacement, i just replace the faucet itself, i always have an extra faucet and teflon tape handy :)

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  8. I get nervous when fixing things, especially faucets. These are great tips though, but thank heavens I live with people who know how to fix leaking faucets. ;)

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  9. A good plumber can be very helpful. A house should be checked with leak problems. It can damage tremendously.

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  10. hmmm, somehow, my plumbing challenged brain have a difficulty understanding the info here, which i know for others would be easy enough to digest, hope however hubby will find this easy enough to understand, so that we don't have to call our handyman whenever we get into plumbing trouble

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  11. this is very handy and nice tips though we don't really fix it ourself since it is free to call the condo mngmt. and fix it. it is nice to know and learn this things for those emergencies

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  12. I would not wish for anybody to have a problematic plumbing system. It is not only inconvenient, it can also be expensive.

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  13. Small leaks can cost you money if not solve right away.

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  14. I always hire somebody to take good care of faucet leaks in the house. Sometimes I installed the faucet in my own when I don't have to dig a hole for the faucet. And since we don't have valve in each faucet in the house I always have to turn off the valve in the main house.

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  15. Knowing maintenance tips are very helpful and they surely do come handy. Simple tips like fixing leaky faucets could give one considerable savings as well as peace of mind.

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  16. This are lovely tips! I rely so much on my brother for a leaking faucet and everything that needs to be done at home.Now that I am far away from home, I am glad my husband is reliable too. At least we don't have to hire the services of a pro plumber not unless the problem can't be resolved by my man.

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  17. Thanks for these tips. I'm glad that our landlord is very reliable in fixing everything here at home. Thank God we never experience leaking faucets.

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  18. Even housewives can do this faucet fixing, and this tip will come in handy for them.

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  19. I'd let my father read these tips. He is the only one who can fix leaky faucets in our household.

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  20. I’ve learned how to fix our leaking faucet by watching our maintenance and repair man doing it. ^_^ Thanks for sharing some tips.

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