How to Repair a Frost-free Faucet

One way to avoid a frozen outdoor faucet during cold winter nights is to install a frost-free faucet on the side of your house. It's essentially a standard hose bib with a long valve chamber that extends through the side of the house. It looks the same as a regular spigot from outside the house, but the valve seat and connection to the water supply are inside, where it's warmer. It has a compression-style valve, and when it leaks, the fault is usually a worn-out valve seat washer. You replace it by removing the valve stem.


Turn off the water to the faucet. If there is no dedicated valve the water supply line, turn off the main water valve for the house.


Remove the screw holding the handle with a Phillips screwdriver. Pull the handle off.


Hold the faucet body steady with one pair of adjustable pliers while you use another pair to unscrew the packing nut just under the handle. Remove the nut, then reattach the handle and use it to pull the valve stem straight out. Most frost-free stems are 24 inches long, so keep pulling until it's all the way out.


Remove the screw holding the seat washer and take out the washer. If the stem has an O-ring, cut it off with a utility knife. Rub a little plumber's grease on a replacement O-ring and slide it into place. Replace the old seat washer with a new one and tighten the screw back on to hold it.


Push the valve stem all the way back into the valve seat. Remove the handle and screw on the packing nut. Tighten it with adjustable pliers while holding the faucet steady with the other pair of pliers.


Replace the handle and turn on the water. Open the faucet and then close it to check for leaks.