3 Baths at Last!

Sinks, showers, pipes - usually pertaining to water or sewage. So don't mix them up.
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Fast_Ed
Posts: 550
Joined: Wed Oct 23, 2013 9:45 pm

3 Baths at Last!

Post by Fast_Ed »

So, Amanda got the shower working in the great room bathroom.

It's a Symmons Temptrol and the symptoms were that when the knob was turned to the hot position all water pressure would be lost.

Turns out that the spindle gets gunked up and seizes, usually affecting the hot side of the faucet. This repair can all be made from the shower side.

The steps are simple:
1. Remove screw from handle. Handle is then gripped with channel locks and forced up and down to 'wiggle' it off and break the corrosion.
2. unscrew outer brass cap, then inner brass cap. The inner cap was a larger-than-1" hex. It took some serious work to get it free.
3. grasp spindle (this is the part that the handle mated with) and pull out of fitting.
4. assembly is reverse of removal. spindle came with a gasket that fits on the inner cap.

Of course, it wasn't as easy as just replacing the spindle (a $40 part). When we got it apart, it turned out that the threads that the spindle rides on to adjust water temperature were ripped apart. These threads are part of the inner cap.

So at 9:45 we decided we could make it across town to buy a new cap (a $30 part.) Home depot closes at ten but we just made it. The new part threaded right on.

At last, we have hot water in that shower! It is so nice to finally have a 3rd shower for guests.
kevm14
Posts: 15200
Joined: Wed Oct 23, 2013 10:28 pm

Re: 3 Baths at Last!

Post by kevm14 »

Nice! And a pressure balancing shower, at that.

I was thinking about a recommendation/star system, by the way. That way while browsing, you could see what was a productive thread or not (based on popular opinion I guess). Also while searching, the same thing. But that requires add-ons. The point is, I would use it (if I had it) to recommend this post.
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