Leaking kitchen tap spout – how to fix it?

A leaking kitchen tap is not just a logistical or technical problem, nor a minor inconvenience. It is an annoying, irritating fault that not only dampens your mood, but also affects the functioning of the kitchen and the entire flat or house. Why does such a small defect have such a big impact on household life, and how can you effectively fix a leaking spout? The answers are in this text! Check it out, and you won’t need to order an expensive repair from a specialist again!

A faulty kitchen tap and its consequences

We should start with an argument that will convince almost anyone who cares about their flat or house – the financial one. A spout seal on a kitchen tap that isn’t watertight means the amount of water used in the kitchen increases. That translates into higher water bills. And that’s not all. A fault of this kind, left unattended, can lead (and usually does lead) to a serious failure of the spout itself. Replacing it will certainly be far more expensive than buying a simple seal and fitting it yourself.

Another important (extremely!) argument is… peace and quiet. Sound silly? It shouldn’t, because a situation in which household members can constantly hear water dripping from the tap is a form of mental torture. Concentration, relaxing while cooking together, a tea or coffee in the kitchen? Forget it when the tap keeps dripping and the kitchen tap slowly, yet inexorably, starts to fail! Almost no one wants to put up with that.

A final argument combines all the above: a working tap means a working kitchen, home, and happy household. It’s therefore worth knowing how to replace the seal in a tap. Replacing the seal in a kitchen tap is not nearly as difficult as it might seem. How do you do it properly so you don’t have to redo it later and waste valuable time and equally valuable nerves?

The spout and its sealing – what are they?

A tap consists of many components, one of which is the spout. It’s the part from which water flows into the basin/sink/bowl (depending on the model of kitchen tap, which generally share a standard design).

The spout mounting seal, when damaged, will show cracks or wear on its surface. It is a small component that seals the body of the kitchen tap and the spout.

A damaged seal also risks damaging the spout itself, which is why it’s so important to fix such minor faults as they arise. Otherwise, a small fault turns into a serious failure that is not only harder, but far more expensive, to repair.

Replacing the kitchen tap spout seal

To replace the spout seal, buy tap seals that fit the specific model of your kitchen tap. To do this, check who the manufacturer is. Otherwise, the seals often turn out to be mismatched, which is another waste of money.

Replacing a kitchen tap spout seal is not among the most difficult service tasks involved in fixing leaking taps. To do it, you need to separate the spout from the body of the kitchen tap. Unscrewing the spout with a screwdriver must, however, be preceded by shutting off the water supply by closing the globe valve.

Then simply remove the seal itself (it is located at the junction between the spout and the tap body) and clean the place where it was seated. Cleaning should be carried out using alcohol-based agents or other degreasing substances. This step is important because an uncleaned seat will contribute to the seal wearing out prematurely.

After cleaning the contact point between the spout and the body, secure everything by fitting a new seal, refitting the spout and opening the globe valve. As you can see, the task is not too difficult, and even an inexperienced person should be able to carry it out. Leaving damaged seals in place is a bad idea, and they should be replaced as soon as you notice a water leak. Good luck!