Hose bibs live hard lives in Virginia: baked all summer, frozen all winter, wrenched by hoses year-round. A drip at the spout or a spray at the handle is the most ignored leak in home plumbing — and in summer, the most expensive per week.
Drip at the spout
A worn washer or seat. On a standard bib this is a 15-minute repair; on a frost-free sillcock the washer sits on a long stem reaching back into the house, still fixable but fussier.
Spray at the handle when the hose runs
Packing nut or packing washer. Often a quarter-turn snug on the nut behind the handle solves it. Still leaking? The packing needs replacement.
The one that means winter got it
A bib that was fine last fall and leaks or loses pressure this spring may have split inside the wall during a freeze — frost-free sillcocks crack a foot inside the house when a hose is left attached over winter. The leak then runs inside your wall or crawlspace whenever the bib is on. If flow is oddly weak or you hear hissing in the wall with the bib open, shut it off and get it inspected.
Prevent the next one
- Disconnect hoses every fall — the single biggest cause of split sillcocks is a connected hose
- Upgrade standard bibs to frost-free models where pipes exit conditioned space
- In Blacksburg, Floyd and the Valley's colder pockets, add insulated bib covers as cheap insurance