Help - leak under kitchen sink

[Dulcimena]

Just that really, there is a steady drip flow coming from the underside of the sink, there is no water in the sink and I can't work out where it's actually coming from.

Most is being captured in a bucket but there seem to be two drip flows and one is inaccessible (between pipework and the wall).

The flow slows down when water is being drawn, eg a tap is run elsewhere or the toilet fills.

Any ideas what to do? I've got a plumber coming later but not sure if there's anything I can be doing in the meantime?

[witchmountain]

Well you could turn the water off at the stopcock if you don't need to use it.

[PigletJohn]

A leak dripping in two places might mean the water is running along a pipe before dripping off.

If you tie a bit of rag tightly round the pipe, it may prevent the water running along, and cause it to drip off the rag. Position the rag above the bucket.

It's possible the leak is at a joint, such as an elbow, or a washing machine valve. Turning off a washing machine valve may help.

[Dulcimena]

Thanks, I will try that and turn off the valves.

Could it be caused by overtightening the taps? We've had new ones put in a few weeks ago and DH is very firm with them - they were dripping for a while so it's an ingrained habit but wondering if it could have caused the problem?

[PigletJohn]

overtightening taps will wear out the washer and its seat and make them drip.

It is a common error among older people, who grew up with worn-out taps or didn't know how to change a worn-out 10p washer.

It might be leaking at the nut fastening the tail of the tap to the waterpipe.

[Villagernumber9]

You need to dry it off with kitchen towels to find out exactly where the water is coming from before fixing everything that it could be.