it's inevitable that sometime during your home ownership, you're going to encounter the dreaded "leaking garden hose faucet".

but it's simple really to fix... so much that your 14 year old could most likely fix it, so long as you can pry them off the xbox.

in fact... it's one of the most easy fixes around your home.

Step 1: Step One

TURN OFF THE WATER SUPPLY.

that is... unless you appreciate a good challenge and an outdoor bath.

next up: you'll need channel locks or some kind of wrench.

on every outdoor faucet there is usually a large nut just below the turnkey. a good pair of channel locks are best for this.

loosen up that nut and on the inside there's another threaded nut holding the inner housing to the outer... turn the key to loosen it and once you remove it you should see the end has a washer.

most likely this washer is your villain... causing the faucet to drool all over the place.

most likely this washer is also 3/8.

as you can see mine had began to rot and fray.

i took my old one and matched it up in a book they had at the big orange box. a box of washers ran me 1.25

Thats much better than 125 for a service call.

Step 2: Replace It All

my washer was a beveled design... so i simply slapped it into place and i was basically finished after going in reverse with previous steps.

yours might be a flat washer... you'll find out once you take it off. it might also have a screw holding it on.

sidenote: use a small dab of super glue to affix it to make sure the washer doesn't fall into the faucet crooked or something and cause more problems.

once you have it all back together, turn the water back on and your rose bushes will be happy to receive a drink.

your water bill will also lose some weight... after all, it IS swimsuit season.