I'm MAD!!!!

That would really tick me off too. I do not have shut off valves either here in Florida. I would go and get a lockbox at Lowes or Home Depot and cover it.

Rub dog poop on it.. JK

Actually you can remove the knob on it and use a pair of pliers in the future to turn it on and off.

I put a lock on ours for this very reason. The punk kid two doors down pulled this stunt on us in our old house. Fortunately the bill wasn't too outrageous so take heart. It might not be that bad. I will say my husband got even, though, when the kid messed with the little old lady next door to us. He let the air out of all the kid's tires and put the caps on his dash. I can't say I agree but the kid never did mess with any of us after that. Good luck.

Oh B.! I am sorry you are mad!
Funny answers from the people not in Texas about shut off valves inside the house! What the?? That would be awesome!
There are some styrofoam covers you can get at home depot or lowes that just make it more difficult to get to.
Putting dog poo would be funny but the little sh&t heads would just get you back again.
Sit out and see if you can catch them.
Good luck and GOD BLESS!
D.

I would just take off the turning part. I had to do that at one place we lived. It I wanted to turn it on I had to go get a wrench and turn it on, which is likely too much work for neighborhood kids.

Laurie has a good idea. I also think you can get a new faucet put in that requires an allen wrench. I would not be happy either!

They have locks for them at places like Lowes and Home Depot. That sucks. =(

My landlord "winterized" mine by wrapping foam around it and securing with duct tape. There's no getting into that sucker.

I would call your water company. They may not be able to help you out on the bill portion, but report it none the less. Ask them what you can put on the faucet so that it can't be turned on. I'm sure they are familiar with devices you can use.

when i was young still living at home we had a faucet where you could remove the round thing that you turn on the water with. When we had to turn the water on we had to go get the round thing. Not sure if they have them nowadays but if so, maybe you could get one and install it. What a pain.

Plumbers are wonderful people. They can easily add a shut off switch inside your house--no matter where you live!
Good luck.
That stinks.

I would also mention this trick to their parents.

Does your faucet have a shut off valve inside. Mine do so the faucet doesn't freeze in the winter. If I were you I would check that first since it is the easiest solve.

Next easiest is to take a screwdriver and take the handle off. Can't very well turn it on with no handle. :) The only downside is if you lose the screw and handle you can't turn it on either.

I would sit inside where I could see who turned it on and wait with some type of nerf gun or something.............. OOOH! I HATE when kids get out of hand like that! Makes me so mad! Where ARE their manners anymore???
As far as the faucet, I would go with the shut off valve inside. Problem is, there are so many other things that can be messed with outside. (at least here in Florida anyway) Our power main is outside. So is the main for the water for the whole house. (in the ground near the sidewalk) UGH! It's really crazy!

Can you hire a plumber to install a lock on it? I'm pretty sure that a plumber can do that.

It would be better than coming back from vacation to find that it has done it for a whole week.

So sorry.
Dawn

there HAS to be a main switch inside the house or basement. It should have a red levered handle.

Added: now that I think about it, the cutoff switch for our back faucet is actually under the kitchen sink (shares a wall).

Uggh! I would be mad too! I don't have an answer for you, but we had some idiot ring our door bell and run away at 2 AM. I was ready to beat some...well you know. I am thinking it was the punk kid down the street. He is the only one that has been a problem to some of our neighbors.

I know that you do get a faucet cover. At least here in South Africa, you can get them from your local hardware store. It's a cover with a lock - it's to prevent people using the faucet.

You say there's no interior cutoff -- wow, I've never seen a house like that. You might want to check the house plans, if you have them, or call a local plumber and ask if there is such a thing but in a place that's accessible to a plumber and not easily accessible to you, so you might never have seen it. If it does indeed turn out there is no way to cut off the water from inside, ask the plumber if there is a way to cut it off elsewhere or how else you might handle this.

Meanwhile, get a cover you can secure over it -- ask at Home Depot or a similar place. A cover is fine but if a kid were really determined he might still get past it.

Relax..... it's just a prank. Obviously they know you are bothered by them. Kids are loud....that's how they are made. It could be so much worse... slashing tires, spray painting your house. There are faucet covers at home depot. Do you have motion sensor lighting....? Might deter them.
If you are bothered, talk to them. If that doesn't work, go to their parents. You can never pick your neighbors.

This will pass. really