My outdoor faucet dripped for an entire summer. I told myself it was “just a few drops.” Then my water bill came — eighteen dollars higher than the same month the previous year. I did the math. That drip was wasting about three gallons a day. Over a hundred gallons a month. Down the drain for nothing.

Fixing it took me fifteen minutes and a four-dollar part. I should have done it in May.

Diagnose: Is It the Handle or the Spout?

Turn the faucet all the way off. If water drips from the spout, the washer inside the valve is worn out. If water leaks from around the handle stem when the faucet is ON, it is the packing nut or packing washer.

Mine was dripping from the spout — washer replacement. This is the most common outdoor faucet problem by far.

What You Need

• Adjustable wrench or channel-lock pliers
• Flathead screwdriver
• Replacement flat faucet washer (take the old one to the hardware store to match the size — they cost about fifty cents each, buy a pack)

Step by Step

1. Turn off the water supply. There should be a shutoff valve inside the house that controls the outdoor line. If you do not have one, turn off the main water supply temporarily.
2. Open the outdoor faucet to release any pressure and drain remaining water.
3. Remove the handle screw. It is usually under a plastic cap on top of the handle. Pry off the cap, unscrew the screw, pull the handle off.
4. Unscrew the packing nut. This is the hexagonal nut directly under where the handle was. Use your wrench. The valve stem assembly comes out with it.
5. Replace the washer. At the bottom of the stem, there is a brass screw holding a rubber washer. Unscrew it, swap the old washer for the new one, tighten the screw back down.
6. Reassemble. Screw the stem back in, tighten the packing nut, reattach the handle, replace the screw and cap.
7. Turn the water back on and test. If it still drips, the valve seat (the brass ring the washer presses against) might be pitted. That requires a seat-dressing tool — still easy, but one step beyond a washer swap. Try the washer first.

Fifteen minutes. Four dollars. My water bill is back to normal and I do not hear that drip-drip-drip every time I take out the trash. If your outdoor faucet has been dripping, just fix it. The washer costs less than the extra water you are paying for.