How do I fix a leaky kitchen shut off valve?

Step 1 – Tighten the Nut and Check. Wrap a masking tape around the jaw of your slip-joint pliers to avoid scratching and damaging the soft metal parts of the leaking shut-off valve. Step 2 – Turn Off the Water Supply. Step 3 – Dismantle the Shut-off Valve. Step 4 – Clean or Replace Washers. Step 5 – Reassemble. Click to see full answer. Simply so, how do I fix a leaky shut off valve?First shut off the water to the leaking water valve. Next remove the handle from the stem and then loosen and remove the packing nut. Remove the old washer and slide on the new one. Reinstall the packing nut, tighten lightly with a wrench (don’t over tighten at this or any other point) and reattach the handle.Subsequently, question is, why is shut off valve leaking? The packing nut is responsible for making a watertight seal where the valve stem meets the water line. So, if there is a leak at the valve stem, it most likely means the valve is not shut off all the way. The first thing you should do to stop the leak is to tighten the packing nut. Similarly, you may ask, how do you fix a leaking shut off valve under the kitchen sink? Stop a valve from leaking by tightening the packing nut. Wrap a rag around the nut, which is just under valve handle, grip it with adjustable pliers and turn it clockwise one-eighth turn. This may compress the rubber and plastic parts inside enough to stop the leak.Can a water shut off valve go bad?You can spend time rebuilding the old valve, but the problems will just reappear years from now. The best way to deal with bad valves is to replace them with modern quarter-turn ball valves. They rarely lock up, leak or wear out and best of all, they’ll take just an hour or so to install. Here’s how to put them in.