Plumbing question- leaking faucet connector hose kitchen sink

[rubor]

I was at my parents' house today, and I realized the kitchen sink had been slowly leaking for who knows how long. My parents throw money at problems, even minor ones. They immediately called a plumber, who will be here tomorrow at the end of the day. I figure this gives me one day to fix it myself, impress them with the savings, and convert the two of them to Mustachianism. Only problem - I can't seem to fix it!

I isolated the problem to a faucet connector hose off the hot water stop valve. It drips whenever the water is on. I removed the leaking connector hose and took it to Lowe's. I got a replacement. They said it's a compression valve and so I should not use plumber's putty or tape. The instructions say to hand tighten and then wrench a quarter turn. I did that, and it still leaked. So I tightened it more, and it still leaked. I am thinking I am going to redo it with plumber's tape, but I thought I would ask the experts first. Any ideas? Two potential Mustachians are hanging in the balance!

I attached pics if that is helpful.

[Grid]

So I just installed a new sink in my little house, and installation involved hand-tightening with just a quarter turn as well, but I was attaching the hose similar to the one you're working with to new fittings.  The problem is also with the old fittings to which you are attaching - make sure you've removed any and all debris (with a wire brush possibly) before trying to reattach.

Some teflon tape after that may work.  Good luck.

[Grid]

http://plumbing.about.com/od/basics/qt/Teflon-Tape-How-To-Use-Teflon-Tape.htm  There's a picture there of teflon tape being used on a water inlet similar to yours.  I wasn't really sure if teflon tape would be useful, but I hope it is in your case! 

[Greg]

If the leaks are between the hose and the nut, tape may not help.  The seal is this case is created by the threaded valve fitting compressing the rubber seal against the end of the hose inside the nut.  So either the seal is not compressing enough or it's trying to compress against uneven surfaces.  Too much flex on the hose will cause this as well... meaning too much twist pushing the hose end sideways.   In your case a much longer hose looped loosely around to make the same turns but in the opposite direction might work better.

[enigmaT120]

I suppose the solid fittings the hose attaches to could be cracked, but it would be weird to have both do so at the same time.

[rubor]

If the leaks are between the hose and the nut, tape may not help.  The seal is this case is created by the threaded valve fitting compressing the rubber seal against the end of the hose inside the nut.  So either the seal is not compressing enough or it's trying to compress against uneven surfaces.  Too much flex on the hose will cause this as well... meaning too much twist pushing the hose end sideways.   In your case a much longer hose looped loosely around to make the same turns but in the opposite direction might work better.

That's an interesting idea. I got the same length as the one that was there originally. Could maybe try getting a longer one or trying to reduce the flex in it.

[rubor]

Well, I feel dumb. Tried using teflon tape, and still didn't work.

Eventually the plumber showed up. So there was a small leak in the sprayer hose. That was dribbling down the sprayer hose...through the faucet base...onto the faucet connector hose ...and making it appear that the attachments were leaking. I was looking in the wrong place!

$180 for a few minutes of work. Plumbers are ridiculous. My parents remain unconvinced by my fix-it-yourself lifestyle.

Thanks for the ideas to everyone.

[Greg]

Well at least you tried!

[PindyStache]

Sorry to just be reading this now--this same exact thing happened to us and it took us a while to figure it out too! The stupid little hand sprayers are like $8 too. At least by trying you've learned something and will have some reference if something similar happens again.