Replace faucet washers

7 easy steps to follow |

(Image credit: Mint Images / Getty Images)

If you want to replace faucet washers on your own, there are a few simple steps you will need to follow.

Some jobs around the home will need a professional with experience and expertize. Others can be done yourself. This not only saves money but can also save time too, as you can simply get on with it without having to wait for a plumber to be free.

Replacing faucet washers is one of those tasks. It is also worth knowing how to unclog a toilet without a plunger and how to fix a leaky faucet by yourself – and how to prevent such problems from occurring.

‘Washers don’t last forever,’ confirms Lucy Searle, global editor in chief for Homes & Gardens. ‘When old or damaged, they will cause the faucet to leak, as the washer can’t form a watertight seal. This is easy enough to fix though and it won’t take long either.’

Martha Stewart is a firm advocate of doing jobs like this yourself. ‘When the sink is clogged or the toilet runs, don't rush to phone the plumber,’ she says. ‘With the right tools and basic instructions, you can solve most minor plumbing problems in your home, including knowing when to drip faucets.’

How to replace faucet washers

The good news is that this is one of the simplest DIY plumbing tasks and it shouldn’t take long either. In fact, it should only take a few minutes and it won’t need much in the way of tools. You won’t need to do any drilling or mess around with any pipes and, as Polly Shearer, bathroom expert at Tap Warehouse confirms, replacing faucet washers is simple, satisfying and totally safe.

You need to check first whether the faucet has a washer or ceramic disc cartridge. This guide deals with changing a washer so if your faucet has a ceramic disc cartridge then you need to do things differently.

‘Many people are unaware that the cause of a leaky faucet can come from the washer itself. When they get worn, they start to become less effective, so a solution to this is to change the washer,’ says Polly.

Shopping List

You will need:

• Flat-head screwdriver: here are some highly-rated options from Amazon

• Spanner: this 9-piece set from Amazon will do the trick

• WD-40: you can buy this from Amazon

• Old cloth

• New washer

1. Turn off the water supply

There should be an isolation valve underneath the faucet, which can be used to turn off the water to that particular sink. If you don’t have one of these, turn off the water at the mains. If you’re changing the washer on the hot water faucet then you will need to turn off the boiler and immersion heater too.

2. Insert the drain stopper

This will prevent you losing any screws or components down the drain if you drop them. It’s also a good idea to place an old towel inside the sink to avoid damaging the surface if you drop something.

3. Remove the cover from the faucet

Do this using your screwdriver, carefully. This will expose the valve, which can then be removed using the spanner. If it is stiff then hold the faucet in place with a wrench if you have one, but protect the faucet with a cloth first.

4. Secure the washer

The washer is underneath the valve, secured in place with either a screw or a nut. Remove the washer with a spanner or, if it’s too difficult to undo, spray some WD-40 around it and allow this to soak in before trying again.

5. Replace the old washer

Replace the old, worn washer with a new washer in the same size.

6. Put the faucet back together again

Screw the valve back into place, being careful not to overtighten as this can damage the faucet. Fasten the top back onto the faucet and you’re all done.

7. Turn the water back on

Remove the towel from your sink, take out the plug and turn the water back on.

Why do faucet washers need replacing?

Most faucets, whether kitchen or bathroom, comprise two parts – the seat and washer.

When you turn the faucet on, the washer is directed towards the seat, creating pressure. This in turn forces water out through the spout. When you turn the faucet off, the washer creates a watertight seal by pushing against the seat, ensuring no water flows through.

When washers are old and worn, they don’t create this watertight seal and can cause the faucet to leak. When a faucet starts to leak, the first thing to check is if it needs a new washer. They cost very little and can be purchased from DIY or hardware stores as well as online and tend to be sold in packs with different sizes to choose from to match your existing washer.

Do I have to turn the water off to replace a washer?

Mixer units may also have a separate 'o-ring' seal at the base of the spout. This can be replaced without turning off the water supply, but make sure you get the correct size replacement before starting work.

How often should I replace a faucet washer?

As they are prone to constant wear and tear, you can expect to change a washer every one to two years.

Hayley is an interiors journalist, content provider and copywriter with 26 years experience who has contributed to a wide range of consumer magazines, trade titles, newspapers, blogs and online content. Specialising in kitchens and bathrooms, she has twice won the CEDIA Award for Best Technology feature. Hayley writes for H&G about kitchens, bathrooms, cleaning, DIY and organizing.

How to Change a Faucet Washer

hennessey_adminApril 29, 2019Blogs

If you have a leaky faucet, you may have heard that changing the faucet washer will stop the leak. It’s certainly worth a try and is a relatively simple task. The first step in how to change a faucet washer is to determine if your faucet actually has a washer. The majority of new faucets today are so-called washerless faucets. A compression faucet is the only type of faucet that uses a neoprene washer.

How to Identify a Compression Water Faucet

Compression water faucets are an older style faucet. They can be installed in the kitchen, at the bathroom sink, or in the bathtub. You can identify a compression washer faucet by the separate hot and cold water handles and their action requiring you to tighten the handles down to close off the water flow. These faucets work by using a compression stem which is sort of like a screw with a washer at the end of it that presses down on the valve seat. Just because your faucet has two handles doesn’t mean it’s a compression faucet.

There are double handle cartridge faucets that are newer. The way to tell the difference is that with the cartridge faucet, half a turn on a handle is all it takes to turn the water on or off. With a compression faucet, you have to use extra effort to turn it on or off, often requiring more than one full turn of the handle.

Step By Step Directions to Change a Faucet Washer

So now that you’ve identified your faucet as a compression faucet, it’s time to see if changing the washer will fix your leaky faucet. You might as well replace another part, called the O-ring, at the same time, as you are going to be taking the faucet apart and reassembling it. Here are your step-by-step directions:

Turn off the water supply valves. These will be found on the wall under the sink. For a bathtub, you may not have access to the water supply valves. You may want to call a plumber.
Turn both of the faucet’s handles to the “on” position to empty any water from the pipes.
Close the drain or put a cloth over it to prevent small parts from going down the drain.
Lay out a towel that you can place the parts on, in the order in which you removed them. This will make it easier to reassemble the faucet later.
Remove both handles or knobs by prying off the temperature cap (a plastic piece with H or C) to uncover the screw. Unscrew the screw, and remove the screw and the knob or handle.
Removing the knobs or handles will reveal the valve stem. Use a wrench to loosen the locking nut. Remove the valve stem.
On the stem, you will see a screw, and underneath that is the black washer, and underneath that is the white O-ring. Remove them all.
Take the old parts to the hardware store so you get the right replacement parts. Ask someone in the plumbing aisle for assistance, if needed.
Coat the valve stem with plumbers grease and install a new O-ring and washer. Replace the screw.
Replace the valve stem, and reassemble the handles or knobs.
Turn the water supply lines back on.
Slowly turn the water on. If there’s no leak, you’re done. If water sprays everywhere, or there’s still a leak, either start over or call a local plumber.

Is It Time for a New Faucet?

If you’ve repaired your faucet multiple times, it may be time for a new faucet. Or if you’re remodeling, you may want to put in new faucets to update your bathroom or kitchen. Do your homework before deciding on what type of faucet to buy. Consider the pros and cons of each, and read the reviews for each type of faucet. And remember that you get what you pay for. Moen and other similar faucets may cost more, but they are better made and will last longer. Consider calling a plumber to install your new faucets so that everything is up to code.

Call Plumbing By Jake for Plumbing Repair and Installation

Call 928-377-5910 for an emergency plumber 24/7 or during regular business hours if it’s not an emergency. You can use our contact form to schedule plumbing repair or installation of a water softener system for your home or business. At Plumbing By Jake, we back every repair or installation with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. We serve Kingman, Bullhead City, Golden Valley, Lake Havasu, and all of Mohave County, Arizona.

How to make plastic washers for repairing faucet bushings

Very easy to make, plastic washers from improvised materials for repairing ceramic faucet bushings.

Greetings to all DIYers!

Today I want to share another option for repairing a leaking ceramic faucet with homemade plastic washers (gaskets), which can be easily made from improvised materials, such as milk bottle caps.

I must say that almost three years ago, I already wrote about one option for repairing a domestic crane box, using a rubber gasket that can be made from an old gasket from the same crane box. This article can be viewed here.

By the way, it should be noted that this repair method turned out to be very successful, since the crane box with such a rubber gasket served me for almost two and a half years. During this time, I only pulled up this crane box three times, but I didn’t change anything in it. Moreover, this gasket could have lasted longer, but since it was already thin, I simply decided to replace it with a new one. And this new gasket, just now I have in the same faucet box mixer in the bathroom.

However, it should be noted that there is another way to similarly repair a leaking crane box. And this method consists in replacing the plastic washer (gasket) at the base of the crane axle box. Many readers just wrote about this method to me in the comments to the last article.

As a result, when some time ago I began to leak the faucet box in the kitchen faucet, I decided to go this way and made a gasket for it from a plastic cap from a milk bottle.

Since then, four months have passed and the crane box with such a gasket works great and does not leak. That's why I decided to share this method here.

Materials and tools

To make such gaskets and repair the crane box, we need the following accessories:

Materials:

Old crane box with large axial play.
Plastic caps for milk bottles.

Tools:

Screwdriver with PH0 bit.
Hammer.
Punch for 9 mm diameter.
Construction knife.
Powerful scissors.

Procedure for the manufacture of gaskets and repair of the crane box

For repairs, I took an already used, but still fully functional crane box. This faucet axle box has a significant play (gap) in the longitudinal direction, because of which, even if it is tightly tightened, it still passes water.

To begin with, we will disassemble this axle box.

To do this, first remove the rubber gasket and ceramic plates from it.

And then, using a screwdriver, unscrew the threaded pin, which is also a limiter.

Well, then, we pull out the rod from the body of the crane box.

And here on the rod we see the plastic washer-gasket itself.

This gasket will need to be replaced, although you can leave it and add another plastic washer that we will make.

Now let's start making the gasket.

To do this, use a punch to punch holes in the lid. Since the lid is wide, three holes can be punched in it at once.

These holes will be the inside diameter of our gaskets, which is 9mm. By the way, if there is no punch, then you can use, for example, a metal drill with a diameter of 9 mm.

Now, using a construction knife, cut out the bottom of the lid with holes along the perimeter.

And then, cut out the blanks of future gaskets with scissors.

After that, the finest work begins. Using scissors, cut out the washers-gaskets themselves from the blanks.

The outside diameter of these gaskets should be around 11-11.5 mm. Moreover, special accuracy and evenness for the outer diameter is not important. Therefore, cutting out the gaskets with scissors, you can not process them further.

So I have already prepared a lot of these pads for future use.

Now you need to put the gasket on the stem.

Since the gasket turned out to be not so thick (its thickness is about 1.2 mm.), You can also put on the old gasket.

Well, now it remains to assemble our crane box.

Assemble it in reverse order.

Insert the stem first.

Then screw in the grub screw.

And then we install the ceramic plates and the rubber gasket.

As a result, it can be seen that the outer part of the rubber gasket does not reach the body of the crane box a little.

This means that there is no longitudinal play in this faucet box, and therefore, when we install it in the mixer, it must hermetically shut off the water.

Of course, another question is how long the plastic gasket itself, made in the manner described above, will work. As I noted at the beginning of the article, I now have a faucet box with a similar homemade gasket in my kitchen. And she has been working for about four months. I think that this is already a good time, especially since replacing, in which case, such a gasket can be very easy.

In general, you can of course experiment and try to make such gaskets not only from plastic caps, but also from other suitable parts from various household plastic waste. Thus, it will be possible to establish empirically which gaskets will be more durable.

Well, that's all for me! Good luck with the repair everyone!

Mario's own brother, or repairing a dripping faucet.

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Water taps are in every house. And while they work normally, we do not pay attention to them at all. But sooner or later, any faucet starts to leak. At first, the water drips slightly, and then it can even reach a constantly flowing trickle of water with the tap closed. What to do? You can buy a new faucet and just replace it, you can call a plumber, or you can easily fix this faucet yourself, which we will do now. These manipulations are available even to a woman who is able to hold a wrench or pliers in her hands.

We will be repairing a ceramic faucet box (this is how plumbers call the mechanism that we simply call a faucet). Why ceramic? Because now it is very rare to find old worm-drive crane boxes. It is very easy to determine which one you have installed. If you need to turn it several times to open the faucet completely, then you have an old, worm-driven faucet and this article is not about your case. If, for full opening, it is enough to turn the tap half a turn, then the crane box is ceramic.

And so, we have a ceramic faucet box that cannot completely shut off the water. To confirm the diagnosis, it is necessary to press on the valve. If the dripping stopped or decreased - hooray, this is our client! Now carefully pry with a knife and remove the decorative cap that covers the nut, or the screw that holds the faucet handle.

Stop! Forgot to turn off the water on the riser! Phew… We almost made a flood…

Unscrew the nut or screw and remove the faucet handle by pulling it out. Now let's carefully examine the place where the rod of the crane box comes out of the crane body. If we see even a small step under the locking bracket, then we see one more confirmation of our diagnosis - the wear of the thrust washer.

Using a wrench or pliers, unscrew the faucet box from the mixer. We take it out and disassemble it. To do this, just remove the locking bracket and press on the stem. It will crawl out of the body and squeeze out the entire mechanism of the crane box. We remember in what sequence the insides crawl out of it, so that later they can be collected in the same order. It is curious that in this case, many plumbers explain to the client that the sealing ring (red in the photo below) has worked, or the ceramic plates have frayed ... In short, the faucet needs to be changed. But in fact, the problem is only in one small worn part - the stem thrust washer.

If the valve was leaking heavily before dismantling, then most likely we will not find even the remains of a worn washer inside, as if there was nothing there. Just in case, we look inside the case to make sure that there are no remains of this washer there either. Initially, this washer is made of some kind of white dense plastic. The worst thing about this situation is that this penny washer is almost impossible to find in stores. They probably do this on purpose to force the client to replace the entire crane. But this way is not for us. Advanced plumbers replace this washer with a ring twisted from copper wire with a diameter of 1 mm. But this method is also not for us, because we have a 3-D printer and we can make the original of this part ourselves. This is what we should roughly get:

The models of this washer can be found here:

Thrust washer original Thrust washer modifiedWasher nuts repeats the original washer. The ring washer is slightly larger and reshaped, but should theoretically last longer before wear. Both fit. We print with ABS plastic. The dimensions have already been adapted to take into account the shrinkage of the plastic after printing. I tried to make a puck from Flex, but it was only enough for a day. It's too soft and stretchy. And the ABS has been on the hot water faucet for over a month now with no signs of wear.

This is where the puck should be in place.

But if we put the washer directly on the stem, we can get some problems when assembling the valve box.