Tried fixing a leaky faucet with a $5 washer kit and it actually worked

Last weekend my kitchen faucet started dripping nonstop so I grabbed a cheap washer kit from Ace Hardware instead of calling a plumber. Took me about 20 minutes to swap out the old rubber washer and now it's bone dry. Any of you guys have luck with those kits or do you just replace the whole faucet?

3 comments

3 Comments

margaret_taylor421mo ago

My dad showed me the same trick years ago, still works like a charm.

patricialee28d ago

Yeah if my dad showed me a plumbing trick I'd probably still mess it up somehow. Last time I tried fixing a drip I ended up with a fountain in the kitchen and a very unhappy wife.

simon7171mo ago

Yeah that's exactly it, the washer replacement trick is solid for basic leaks. One thing though - you mentioned swapping out the rubber washer, but faucets usually have a little rubber O-ring or a seat washer depending on the type. If you just replaced the flat rubber washer on top of the stem, that might not be the actual part that stops the drip. The real fix is usually the little rubber seat washer at the bottom of the stem where it presses against the valve seat. If you didn't take the stem all the way out and swap that piece, you probably got lucky and it might start dripping again in a few weeks. Still worth trying the cheap kit first though, beats spending $50 on a new faucet.