If your bath faucet starts leaking, it is important to fix it right away. You may not know it, but a simple pinhole leak can waste up to 70 gallons of water every day, while a severely leaking faucet can use up water even more. Water wastage may not only be annoying on your water bills but can also pose a serious threat to the environment as well.

Fortunately, fixing a leaking faucet can be easy ¨C in fact you can even do it yourself. If you do it right, you will no longer need a plumber to do the job for you. Here is what you can do to fix a leaking bath faucet in no time.

First, you need to determine whether your faucet has a washer or not. A washer style faucet has a rubber washer or composition that closes against a metal washer seat, which is found inside the faucet's body. A leak begins when the washer becomes hard or wears out with age. When repairing bath faucets with washers, turn off the water. Tightening the faucet can provide a temporary fix to a leak although it can actually damage your faucet more. Your bathroom may experience a shut off or if it does not, you will need to shut off the main water source to your house.

Next, take the faucet apart. To do this, remove the handle, escutcheon and packing nut. The packing nut may be deeply buried in the handle so you may have to dig for it with the use of a socket wrench. Be careful when handling plastic parts as it can easily break as well as in lifting off the handle. If your faucet has a renewable seat, try smoothing it with a seat wrench as well.

When removing the stem, rotate the handle clockwise. Replace the stem or thread with a new one if it is already worn out. Also, check the washer for breakage or wear. If it already needs replacement, you may want to bring the original with you when you go to the hardware store. Also, some washer seats may not be replaceable so you may want to use a seat-dressing tool for these. Make sure that you install the right type of faucet washer since they may no longer be replaceable. To lubricate the faucet's action, apply petroleum jelly on the threads.

You may want to put new packing if your faucet leaks at the stem. You can try graphite packings, which are as good as nylon covered ones. You can also use an O-ring instead of a packing as well.

Another type of faucet is one that does not have a washer. This faucet has a valve that opens and closes up when the valve shuts off. It easily glides into place and no longer needs additional pressure to stop the flow. Moreover, this type of faucet has lesser leakage problems compared to a washer faucet. This may only either wear out or no longer work properly. When this happens, you should have it replaced right away.

Keep in mind that a major cause of a leaking faucet is due to wear and breakage, so you may want to regularly check your faucets for these signs and replace them whenever necessary before leaking occurs. By taking simple steps to prevent your faucet from leaking, you not only get to save on water expenses but you are also doing your part at conserving the environment as well.

Repairing a leaking bath faucet may yet be a minor plumbing task, but with minimum effort, you can get your leaking faucet all fixed up and working as if it were brand new.

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