It's very common to find leaks if you frequently use your garden hose. There are numerous ways why this happens. A leaky hose might be as simple as a loose connection at the faucet that you can fix with a quick turn of the joint. However, sometimes the cause of the leak can be more serious and require a little extra effort.

Once your garden hose begins to leak, if tightening the connection at the spigot doesn’t solve the problem, or if you find the leak elsewhere on the hose, there is a good chance this problem will get more serious unless the leak is fixed.

The most common reason for joint or spout leakage is a breakdown of the connection of the hose or nozzle fittings, but fixing leak problems like this really isn't so difficult!

Where Is Your Hose Leaking From?

How to find a garden hose leak

Leaking hose collected at spigot
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Leaky garden hose with water coming out at spigot

The most important thing to determine is where the leak on your hose is coming from. It shouldn’t be too difficult to do, but the location of the leak will determine the severity of the problem and how much effort it will take you to fix it.

Spigot

If your hose always leaks from around the connection to the water tap, you may have a problem with the spigot itself or the hose fitting. To rule out an issue with the faucet, unscrew your hose and turn the water on.

Packing washer

If water wells up around the handle, your packing washer may be worn out, or the packing nut may need to be tightened. It is an issue separate from the hose. It is fairly harmless and will not affect your water flow too much. If it is really bad, there are ways to correct this with little effort.

Connections
  • If water only leaks when your hose is secured to the faucet, check if the water is welling up around the actual connection, or from below the fitting.
  • Furthermore, inspect the connections to hose nozzles, if you use them, to see if you have to leak at those fittings, as well as along the hose itself.

Examining Typical Leakage Spots

Inspect all the usual suspects

Dripping garden hose
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Garden hose with a drip

Methods of repairing garden hose leaks vary depending on where the leak is, as there is no fix-all solution. Once you have located the source of the leak, you'll need to fix it.

Leaky Faucet

If you have a leaky faucet, it is most likely an easy enough fix and stems from the packing nut.

First, locate the packing nut and loosen the handle completely before using a wrench to tighten the nut up. If that doesn’t work, loosen it up and wrap about 8 inches of Teflon tape or valve packing around it to help seal it and create a secure connection once you tighten it up.

You can also remove the entire hose bib by loosening the nut and replacing the washer if this doesn’t work, but generally, these don’t go bad as easily, and the above will work just fine.

Leaking From the Fittings

If your hose leaks from either of the fitting ends, you most likely have a bad gasket (or rubber washer) that is easy to replace. In some cases, you may even be missing the gasket. Over time, they can warp and fall out without you even noticing, so check to see if one is present. If not, get one!

To remove an existing gasket, use a flat-head screwdriver to pop it out and place a new one, pushing it down until it’s secure.

A secure gasket should not be able to drop out on its own. If it does, you need to check the sizing of the replacement you bought or push it in more securely. The screwdriver can come in handy for this as well.

Leaking From the Hose End

Hose ends under the fittings can often warp and break from temperature fluctuations, water that freezes within the hose, or from continual flexing near and around the connections.

To fix this problem, cut off the end of the hose under the fitting and get yourself a hose fitting repair kit to replace the ends. Since this only costs a small fraction of a hose replacement, you will practically get a new hose for free.

Just because your hose is damaged enough to leak water doesn’t mean you need to invest in a new hose!

Leaking From the Hose

If you have a hose leaking from a crack or pinhole, don’t despair. These are very easy to mend as long as it doesn’t span the length of the hose, or you find multiple leaks, in which case it might be easier to purchase a new hose. If you have a leak or two, buy a set of hose menders and piece together your hose after cutting it apart!

There are a few different mender kits on the market, so be sure to get the correct size.

A helpful hint to save you from having to return a product and another trip to the hardware store: Take a cut-out piece of the hose with you to the store to check the fit.

What Size Is Garden Hose Thread?

Finding the right connectors for your hose

Garden hose end close up
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The end of a garden hose

Garden hoses range in diameter, so the thread size varies. Hoses are available in a range of sizes, but the most common are ⅜ inch, ½ inch, and ¾ inch. The most commonly used hose size is ¾ inch.

Hose connectors most commonly come in ¾ inch and ⅝ inch sizes, a size that is determined by the inner diameter of the garden hose. However, garden hose threads are not the same as standard pipe threads. If you hold an ¾ inch pipe and an ¾ inch hose next to each other, the threading will not be identical. Because of this, you will need a hose connector. No other type of connector can be substituted for this, so don't attempt to use pipe connectors or any other type of fittings other than those specifically made for garden hoses.

How Will You Fix Your Hose?

Remember, a garden hose leak shouldn't have you rushing out to buy a new one! Once you locate your problem, you can often easily and inexpensively be able to fix any faucet, fitting end, or hose leak with ease and a quick trip to the hardware store.

Make sure to use an expandable garden hose if you have a large yard, as well as a proper hose reel to keep it organized!