A dripping shower is mostly caused by worn rubber washers, gaskets, or seals and corrosion/clogging of the inner parts in the valve. You may be tempted to crank hard or tighten the handle to stop leaking. Well, it will work temporarily, but unfortunately, it only makes things worse because over-tightening the handle will damage the valve. Nonetheless, you will end up spending more money replacing the shower faucet instead of fixing the worn-out part.
If you have a leaking shower is advisable to fix it immediately because it increases your water and electricity bill especially for those who are using compression faucets. In addition, continuous leaking into the wall can damage the wall structure which also adds to the expense of repairing the faulty bathtub faucet set. To avoid unnecessary expenses in the long run, you can DIY to fix a leaking bathtub faucet set by following the step-by-step guide below.
Required Materials and Tools
- Pocketknife• Handle puller/Needle nose pliers
- Adjustable wrench/A deep well socket wrench
- Cartridge
- Plumber seal/grease
- 4-in-1 screwdriver
How to Fix a Single-Handle Shower Faucet
In case you have a single-handle shower faucet set that has been dripping for a while it is high time or advisable to fix it. You need to replace the old cartridge with an identical new one. While shopping for a new one don’t confuse it with the compression cartridge or take the old cartridge to your local hardware store to find the right model or match.
Step 1: Turn off your water valve
First, before you begin to repair the leaking bathtub faucet, turn off your water valve for an easy time while working and eliminate the hazard. The shut-off valve is mostly in the bathroom or near the shower. Or you may shut it off from the basement or in the room next to your bathroom if it is not near the bathtub.
Step 2: Remove your shower handle
After turning off the water valve, pry off the handle cap using the small pocket knife to expose the internal handle screw. With the 4-in-1 screwdriver, choose the screwdriver that perfectly fits into the screw head and then carefully turn the screw counter-clockwise to loosen it. Pull out it and set it aside. If it has more than one screw, ensure you remove all of them. Or heat the handle with a hairdryer set to high heat to remove the handle in case it does not come off after unscrewing it.
Step 3: Remove the faceplate
The metal behind the handle is the faceplate. Unscrew the screws that secure the faceplate, pull it off and set it aside.
Step 4: Pull the Shower Valve
The shower valve is the part that connects to the shower handle with a metal sleeve that covers the end of the valve. The sleeve is known as the escutcheon. If the escutcheon is screwed, unscrew it. When you are done twist it counterclockwise to stem loose and pull it out carefully.
Step 5: Remove the Locking Clip
Some valves may lack or have a locking clip. Locking clips is a metal rod located on the top of the valve. If yours has a locking clip, use a pair of needle-nose pliers to pull it out and set it aside.
Step 6: Drive the Deep Well Socket Wrench to slide over the Cartridge inside
A cartridge is a long cylinder with a metal rod sticking out of the top if you do not know how it looks like. Then, use the adjustable wrench and slide it over the cartridge inside the valve. Ensure it grips the …