[Shop-talk] Leaking faucet

[Scott Hall]

Guys, thanks for the door lock help--the front door popped out.

Then the locksets we picked out didn't show up, so now I'm waiting for them
to arrive to install.

New stupid question: the washing machine's hot water supply faucet is
leaking.

It's brass, has a gate valve, and a wheel handle. When I turn the faucet
on, water is flowing up the stem from the body, spraying off the wheel
handle (the thing you grab and turn), and leaking down into the drain. It
does not leak when turned off.

The drain is that pre-fab box thing that holds the supply faucets and that
the washing machine's drain goes into, but apparently it's shot, because
it's draining down inside the wall and forming a puddle in the basement.

So...Google says I can 'repack' this thing--disassemble it and do a variety
of things to make it stop leaking. Seems to be a loose packing nut or a bad
packing washer.

Before I do that, would the wiser members of the list like to advise
whether or not I should do that, or just replace the whole assembly?
Likewise, the fact that the box-drain-unit isn't, er, holding water bothers
me. Should I replace this too?

My usual M.O. here involves destructively disassembling the faucet, the
supply lines, the drywall, and replacing that drain box all with new,
taking about a week and involving a lot of work. I thought here I might
just repair the faucet and rejoice in the fact that when the washing
machine drains there's no leaking so perhaps if I fix the faucet, I'll have
no leaks and I can focus on more important things.

So...should I repair the faucet? (And if so, please feel free to offer
advice on technique).

Replace the whole faucet?

Replace the supply/drain box or just fix the faucet leak and move on?

I'm trying to avoid the shipwright's disease, and I have so many more
pressing issues, but water leaks don't seem like something to overlook or
halfass.

Thanks.
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