Leaking Tap Repairs Ferntree Gully

Why taps drip

Older homes still have plenty of jumper-valve taps with rubber washers. The washer hardens, the seat wears and the drip starts. Mixer taps use ceramic cartridges that wear or crack, especially when grit from old pipes gets into them. Leaks around handles or spindles usually mean worn O-rings or gland packing.

How we fix them

For washer taps we replace the washer and jumper valve and reseat the tap body so the new washer seals properly. For mixers we fit the correct cartridge for the brand. Shower taps behind tiles are repaired from the front where possible. If a tap is beyond repair or you want a new look, we supply and fit new tapware with isolation valves for easier future service.

Garden and laundry taps

Garden taps on brick walls and posts in sloping gardens take a beating, and the pipe behind can crack. We repair or replace them and fit vacuum breakers where required. Laundry and washing machine taps are replaced with quarter-turn valves that are easier to use.

Older taps in foothills homes

Many Ferntree Gully homes still have the original two-handle taps from the 1960s and 1970s, especially in laundries and older bathrooms. These use rubber washers and brass seats that wear over time. A new washer fixes most drips, but if the seat underneath is pitted, the drip comes back within weeks. We reface or replace seats so the repair lasts. Hard-to-turn taps, handles that spin without stopping and spindles that leak around the stem are all fixable without replacing the whole tap.

Mixer taps and cartridges

Newer kitchens and bathrooms use mixer taps with a ceramic cartridge inside. When that cartridge wears or gets grit in it, the tap drips, leaks from the base or becomes stiff. We identify the brand and model, fit the right cartridge, and clean the aerator while we are there. If a mixer is very old or parts are no longer available, we can supply and fit a new one.

Why a small drip matters

A dripping tap can waste thousands of litres a year and, on a hot tap, pushes up your energy bill as well. Drips from outdoor taps can also soak the ground next to a house, which is not ideal on clay soils.

Ferntree Gully ground and pipes

Ferntree Gully's ground changes as you climb towards the ranges: clay and silty loam on the lower streets, rockier, steeper ground near Upper Ferntree Gully and The Basin. Most homes built before the 1980s were connected with earthenware sewer pipe, and on a slope every joint moves a little over the years and lets roots in. Water service lines from the meter are often long and run through rocky ground or under established gardens. Stormwater has to be carried down the block and away from the house. We use cameras, locators and pressure tests to see what is happening before we dig.

From your call to the finished job