A leaky shower or a tub faucet is one of the most irritating things ever, especially if you are in the middle of a shower and just cannot seem to find a fix to the dripping water.
On top of being irritating, it can be expensive to get it fixed from a professional agency. It can also end up wasting gallons of water in no time!
Not only that, if it is on the hot water side of the shower, it can significantly waste energy and triple your electricity bill (source).
If you are dealing with a similar problem and want to fix it yourself, you are on the right page! It can be a daunting task to repair commercial faucets and that’s why it’s recommended to have an emergency local plumber available near you. Fixing a leaky shower/tub faucet is not as difficult as it may seem. Just follow the steps below to find the perfect fix to your problem! –
Requirement:
- Basic plumbing tools
- Faucet washer kit
- The first instinct when you notice a leaky shower faucet is to tighten the handle as hard as you can. (Over-tightening of the handle may damage the valves)
- If the water still dribbles from the faucet, the opening of the shower valve will be required. For this, turn off the water supply with the help of the ‘shut off valve’ system in your bathroom.
- After the water supply has been turned down, open the bathroom sink faucet that will help in draining out any water from the nearby pipes.
- Now, feel the water dripping if it is hot or cold and remove the required faucet handle. In the older versions, do it by removing the screw in the front and the locking screw on the side. For the newer models, take a screwdriver and pry off the cap to remove the screws.
- Unscrew the required screws according to your faucet model, by turning it clockwise.
- Pull out the handle from the faucet body. Do it with the help of a faucet puller or improvise the removal with a screwdriver.
- Once the handle is removed, remove both the trim and sleeve that you will find over the faucet stem. To remove the faucet stem from the valve, you will need a plumber’s deep socket. Turn the whole mechanism anti-clockwise to unscrew the stem and pull it out of the valve body.
- Now with the help of your faucet washer kit, replace all the faucet washers, seals, O rings, and the flat washer at the end of the faucet stem.
- After all the parts have been replaced, at last, reverse all the procedures mentioned above to replace the faucet stem in the valve body again.
- Do not forget to lubricate the threads with plumber’s grease for efficient working. (Optional)
- Tighten the valve and put the handle back on temporarily for the time being. Turn the water supply on and test the valve.
- If everything is fine and the water does not seem to drip, finish the re-assembly and seal the trim to the wall with a tub caulk (source) that will prevent water from seeping into walls.