Many people use the spigot knob a little firmer than they need to, and this can cause it to leak. These simple but durable spigots are made with rubber washers inside, and just two threaded plastic nuts at each end. Over tightening or over opening the spigot can either cause the plastic nuts to come loose, or the inner washers to roll off.

A leaking spigot can occur in one of 4 ways. Item 1 is the most common culprit:

1. Check that the nut on the OUTSIDE of the bin, just in behind the spigot knob, is tight. If it is loose, the spigot can’t close fully and will drip. This is a tricky knob to see and get to, but it’s the most common culprit. You’ll have easier access to this nut if you open the spigot knob fully. Use your fingers or long nose pliers to tighten. You can very easily test to see if its worked to stop the leak by pressing DOWN on the lid of the bin. If you hear air escaping through the spigot, then it is still not sealing properly.
2. The spigot knob itself is threaded into the spigot body. If you over-open the spigot, sometimes this spigot know can unthread from the body. If this has happened then the spigot knob will turn endlessly and never feel tight. If this is your problem, simply PUSH IN on the spigot knob while tightening,

and the thread should re-engage itself properly. As above, you can press on the lid of the bin and listen for air to see if this corrects your problem.

1. It’s rare, but over-tightening the spigot can cause the spigot washers to roll out of position. By disassembling the spigot and removing it from the bin, you can fairly easily reposition the washers if this has happened. Of course, you will need to have the bin empty in order to be able to do this. To disassemble the spigot, first remove the nut on the inside of the bin. The spigot will then easily pull out, and from there you can take it apart and see if things look right (see images below).
2. Finally, there may be something blocking the spigot from sealing properly. A piece of food waste or bokashi bran could be stuck inside so that the washers cannot make proper contact, causing the spigot to leak. Following step 3 above, you can clean the spigot washers and the inside of the spigot, when you dissemble it from the bin.

By following the above, nearly every spigot can be made as new again.

For ongoing use, it’s best to use the spigot this way:

FOR CLOSING: A simple and light finger tighten is all that is needed to seal the bin.

FOR OPENING: A half to three quarters of a turn is all that is needed to open the spigot. Opening it more than this is not necessary.