How to Fix a Dripping Shower Faucet

Learning how to fix dripping shower faucet leaks is a repair that saves water, money, and sleep. A shower faucet that drips after you turn it off is usually caused by a worn cartridge, a failed washer, or mineral buildup inside the valve. The drip may look small, but a faucet dripping once per second wastes more than 3,000 gallons a year, and that water shows up on your bill. This guide shows you how to identify your faucet type, replace the cartridge or washers, and test the repair so the drip stays gone.

Why Your Shower Faucet Keeps Dripping

A shower faucet controls water flow with a valve hidden behind the shower wall. When you turn the handle to off, a cartridge or a washer presses against a seat to block the water. Over time, the rubber seals wear down, the cartridge cracks, or mineral deposits from hard water build up on the sealing surfaces. Once the seal is imperfect, water seeps through and drips from the showerhead or the tub spout, even with the handle fully off.

The location of the drip tells you where the problem is. A drip from the showerhead with the faucet off usually means the shower valve cartridge or washer is failing. A drip from the tub spout often means the same thing, since the diverter sends water to the spout when the shower is off. A drip from around the handle or the trim plate points to a worn O-ring or packing seal on the valve stem, which is a different and usually simpler fix.

Identifying Your Faucet Type

Before you buy parts, you need to know what kind of faucet you have. Single-handle faucets control temperature and flow with one lever or knob. Inside is a cartridge, a cylindrical part that mixes hot and cold water and shuts it off. Most showers built since the 1990s use single-handle cartridge faucets from brands like Moen, Delta, or Kohler. The cartridge is brand and model specific, so you must match it exactly.

Two-handle faucets have separate hot and cold knobs. Inside each handle is a valve stem with a rubber washer at the end that presses against a metal seat. When the washer wears out or the seat corrodes, the faucet drips. Two-handle faucets are common in older homes and in some traditional-style bathrooms. The fix is usually a new washer and sometimes a new seat, which are cheap and widely available.

To identify your faucet, look for a brand name or logo on the trim plate or handle. If you cannot find one, remove the handle and trim and look for markings on the cartridge or stem. Take the old part to the hardware store and match it in person, or take a clear photo and use the store's faucet identification guide. Buying the wrong cartridge is the most common reason this repair fails, so do not guess. Our guide on how to replace a shower cartridge has photos and brand-specific tips.

Tools and Parts You Will Need

For a cartridge replacement, you need a screwdriver set, an Allen wrench set for the handle set screw, adjustable pliers, and a cartridge puller if the cartridge is stuck. A replacement cartridge that matches your faucet brand and model is the key part, and it costs $15 to $50 depending on the brand. Buy a new set of O-rings for the cartridge housing at the same time, since old O-rings often leak once disturbed.

For a two-handle faucet, you need replacement washers in the right size, a seat wrench, and possibly new valve seats. A faucet repair kit for your brand costs $5 to $15 and includes washers, O-rings, and screws. Keep a tube of plumber's grease on hand to lubricate the new O-rings and the cartridge, which helps them seat properly and last longer.

Useful supplies for either repair include white vinegar for dissolving mineral deposits, a small wire brush or old toothbrush for cleaning the valve housing, and towels to catch water. Put the drain stopper in or cover the drain with a rag before you start, so small screws and clips cannot fall down the drain. Keep a phone nearby to photograph each step as you disassemble the faucet, since the photos make reassembly much easier.

Fixing a Single-Handle Cartridge Faucet

Start by shutting off the water to the shower. Use the shutoff valves for the bathroom if you have them, or shut off the main water supply to the house. Open the shower faucet to release pressure and drain the line, then close it again. Remove the handle by loosening the set screw, usually hidden under a small cap or on the underside of the handle, with an Allen wrench. Pull the handle straight off.

Remove the trim plate and the escutcheon by unscrewing the screws or the retaining nut. You should now see the cartridge held in place by a retaining clip or nut. Note the orientation of the cartridge before you remove it, since it must go back in the same way, and take a photo. Pull the retaining clip out with pliers, then grip the cartridge stem with pliers and pull straight out. If it is stuck, use a cartridge puller or wiggle it gently side to side while pulling. Do not force it with excessive leverage, since breaking the cartridge inside the housing turns a simple job into a difficult one.

Clean the inside of the valve housing with a cloth and white vinegar to remove mineral deposits. Lubricate the O-rings on the new cartridge with plumber's grease, align it exactly as the old one sat, and push it in firmly until it seats. Replace the retaining clip or nut, reassemble the trim and handle, and turn the water back on slowly. Test the faucet through its full range and check for drips with the handle off. Wait ten minutes and check again, since a slow drip may take time to appear.

Fixing a Two-Handle Faucet

For a two-handle faucet, shut off the water and remove the handle on the side that drips. If you are not sure which side is leaking, feel the temperature of the drip: hot water points to the hot side, cold water to the cold side. Remove the handle screw, pull the handle off, and unscrew the packing nut that holds the valve stem in place. Pull the stem straight out.

At the bottom of the stem you will find a rubber washer held by a small screw. Remove the screw, take off the old washer, and inspect it. A washer that is flattened, cracked, or grooved is the cause of the drip. Replace it with a washer of the exact same size and thickness. A washer that is too thick will not let the handle turn fully off, and one that is too thin will not seal.

While the stem is out, look inside the valve body at the seat, the metal ring the washer presses against. If the seat is rough, pitted, or has a groove worn into it, a new washer alone will not fix the drip. Use a seat wrench to remove the old seat and install a new one, or smooth a mildly rough seat with a seat dressing tool. Reassemble the stem with a dab of plumber's grease on the threads and O-rings, reinstall the handle, and turn the water back on. Test both handles and check for drips from the spout and around the handle base.

When the Showerhead Is the Problem

Sometimes the faucet is fine and the showerhead itself is the problem. A showerhead that keeps dripping for a few minutes after you turn off the water is often just draining residual water from the head and the hose, which is normal. If it drips for hours, though, the valve is the cause, not the head. One exception is a showerhead with a faulty washer at its connection, which can weep constantly and look like a valve drip.

To check, unscrew the showerhead from the arm and inspect the washer inside the nut. Replace it if it is flattened or cracked, wrap the arm threads with Teflon tape, and reinstall the head. Also check whether the shower arm itself is loose in the wall, since a loose arm can leak behind the wall and damage the framing. For a full rundown, see our guide on how to fix a leaky showerhead.

Mineral buildup in the showerhead can also cause uneven spray and slow dripping. Soak the head in white vinegar for a few hours to dissolve the scale, then rinse and reinstall it. If the head is old and heavily scaled, replacing it with a new water-efficient model costs $20 to $80 and improves spray quality at the same time. If the drip continues after the showerhead and washers check out, the valve cartridge is the culprit and needs replacement as described above.

Cost to Fix a Dripping Shower Faucet

A dripping shower faucet is a low-cost repair in parts and a moderate one in labor. Doing it yourself usually costs under $50. Hiring a plumber makes sense if the cartridge is stuck, the valve is old and corroded, or you cannot identify the faucet brand.

The hidden cost of a drip is the wasted water. A faucet dripping once per second wastes over 3,000 gallons per year, and a faster drip can waste far more. On a metered water supply, that can add $50 to $200 a year to your bill. A drip that runs down the inside of the wall can also cause mold and rot, so fixing it promptly protects both your wallet and your home.

If the cartridge is stuck, the valve is corroded, or you would rather have a professional handle it, call (877) 762-1902 for help with your shower faucet repair.

How to Prevent Future Drips

Do not overtighten the handle when you turn the shower off. Cranking the handle as hard as you can compresses the washer or cartridge seal and wears it out faster. Turn the handle until the water stops, then stop. Teach everyone in the household the same habit, since a hard-twisting habit can halve the life of a faucet seal.

If you have hard water, descale the showerhead and the valve area once a year with white vinegar to prevent mineral buildup from damaging the seals. Consider a water softener if your water is very hard, since soft water extends the life of every seal and valve in the house. Check your household water pressure too: pressure above 80 psi stresses faucet seals, and a pressure-reducing valve protects all your fixtures at once.

Replace cartridges and washers at the first sign of a drip rather than waiting. A small drip is a cheap fix, but a drip left for months can wear a groove into the valve seat, turning a $15 washer job into a $300 valve replacement. Keep the make and model of your shower faucet written down somewhere, so the next cartridge replacement is a quick trip to the store instead of a research project. For more on shower valve costs, see our shower valve replacement cost guide and our faucet repair cost guide, and browse our DIY plumbing guides for more repairs.