Leaky Faucet question

[MichealKnight]

So I had a bathroom redone due to flood. Insurance Paid. The shower pressure is now much slower. It's ok - but not lovely and fast like it used to be. The contractor told me that the new valves are that way. He also said he's stop by and take the "water saver" out of the new shower head. BUT since then....

I had another bathroom redone. This time I told them - DON'T change the shower -- I don't want the pressure ruined. So - new bathtub. Despite may saying no changes - they did a new shower head - but the pressure stayed good. Now there's a leak - not a huge one , but drip drip drip.

They are saying the sole way to do it is to open up the new wall -- - replace the old valve inside - because it's an old valve it is leaking.

They are reputable - they are willing to make it right before I make final payment BUT they say - new valve will lower the current water pressure.

QUESTION: Water Pressure is important to me. What is wrong If I just keep the old stuff? It's drip-drip- but nobody hears it. Will it ruin the ceilings and leak etc...can I get away with just leaving it alone?

Thanks

 

[finnski1]

So I had a bathroom redone due to flood. Insurance Paid. The shower pressure is now much slower. It's ok - but not lovely and fast like it used to be. The contractor told me that the new valves are that way. He also said he's stop by and take the "water saver" out of the new shower head. BUT since then....

I had another bathroom redone. This time I told them - DON'T change the shower -- I don't want the pressure ruined. So - new bathtub. Despite may saying no changes - they did a new shower head - but the pressure stayed good. Now there's a leak - not a huge one , but drip drip drip.

They are saying the sole way to do it is to open up the new wall -- - replace the old valve inside - because it's an old valve it is leaking.

They are reputable - they are willing to make it right before I make final payment BUT they say - new valve will lower the current water pressure.

QUESTION: Water Pressure is important to me. What is wrong If I just keep the old stuff? It's drip-drip- but nobody hears it. Will it ruin the ceilings and leak etc...can I get away with just leaving it alone?

Thanks

When you say drip,drip, drip are you talking about the shower head dripping into the shower itself. That would be what I would call an annoyance, If you mean a leak in the wall or some where else outside of the shower base then it needs correcting right away.
Also many showers have a simple replacement cartridge which could very well fix your drip. They are usually only 30 or 40 dollars or so and are a simple fix that you could possibly try yourself? For example mine is a Delta and uses something like this.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Delta-R...for-Tub-and-Shower-Valves-IB-133670/300300253

 

[MichealKnight]

Thanks for reply

This is not the shower head leaking - - this is the faucet - -the thing where the water comes out to fill a bathtub. It's drip-drip.

 

[homestead]

Had one like that. Just replaced the cartridge and it fixed it. It was Moen valve, that stopped the dripping out of the faucet.

 

[freedomatlast]

This is not the shower head leaking - - this is the faucet - -the thing where the water comes out to fill a bathtub. It's drip-drip.

If it's Moen or Delta, call the manufacturer and they'll send you a new cartridge for free. That should stop the drip.

 

[finnski1]

This is not the shower head leaking - - this is the faucet - -the thing where the water comes out to fill a bathtub. It's drip-drip.

Despite may saying no changes - they did a new shower head - but the pressure stayed good. Now there's a leak - not a huge one , but drip drip drip

Ok when you said the above it sounded like you meant the shower head.

 

[MichealKnight]

I'll have to look

To the best of my knowledge - this is rather old. House was built in 1995 - -I lived here since 2012.

I'm assuming it says "Moen" or "Delta" somewhere on the spout?

 

[MichealKnight]

I'm wonder what are ramifications to leave it status quo. Ok - so there's drip-drip. the drops go into the bathtub drain - - heck, a shower is tons more water than drips every day -- is it as simple as letting it drip? Then I guess the risk is if the valve/faucet gets worse?

 

[mountainsoft]

Now there's a leak - not a huge one , but drip drip drip.

They are saying the sole way to do it is to open up the new wall -- - replace the old valve inside - because it's an old valve it is leaking.

If it's dripping from the tub spout, and not inside the wall, it sounds like a worn seal or cartridge inside the shower valve. In most cases this is a simple cartridge swap that can be done from inside the shower. You don't need to open up the wall.

If it's a really old shower (i.e. a two handle model before pressure balancers), you may need to replace individual seals, washers, or maybe even the faucet seat. But again, this can be done by just removing handles, you don't need to open up a wall.

As for determining the brand, a photo might help. I don't think my Moen faucets have the brand on them anywhere. You also can't determine the faucet by looking at the tub spout, as it may have been replaced at some point. You might even need to take off the handle and escutcheon plate (decorative trim) to determine the brand.

Any time I encounter and unknown faucet, I take it apart and take the faulty cartridge to the store with me. Unless it's a really obscure brand you should be able to match it up easily at the store.

 

[mountainsoft]

I'm wonder what are ramifications to leave it status quo. Ok - so there's drip-drip. the drops go into the bathtub drain - - heck, a shower is tons more water than drips every day -- is it as simple as letting it drip? Then I guess the risk is if the valve/faucet gets worse?

Stick a bucket under the drip and catch the drips. You might be surprised how much those drips add up over time, which translates into higher water bills (or more electric usage if you're on a well). That's expensive and wasteful. Better to fix a simple problem like this.

 

[OldShooter]

I just went through the valve/shower head investigation for a new house. What I learned:

Some, not all valves limit the flow to the shower head. Studying the mfg downloaded tech specs should tell.

Federal govt has limited shower head flow to 2.5gpm, but a number of shower heads are set to 1.5gpm. Don't buy the latter. There are design decisions internal to the heads, but the first limit to flow is typically a washer that is accessible/removable from the input end of the head.

You might start by removing the shower head and measuring the flow rate (stopwatch and bucket) that the valve delivers to the shower pipe. That will tell you where your problem lies. In the happy event that the valve is not the flow limiter, then you can measure the shower head before and after removing the flow limiting washer. In the next happy event that you like the flow rate with no washer, you are done.

I have been experimenting with internal mods to shower heads and have a couple where the flow rate is quite nice. These are not the prettiest: https://www.ebay.com/itm/251107159262?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649 but they are easy to disassemble with one Allen wrench and the internal parts are easy to modify. Easy for me, anyway, because I have a drill press and a lathe. A minimal mod you might try is to enlarge the small spray holes using a #50 drill bit and deburring carefully. If that's still not enough of an improvement, start looking at the water path to get to the holes and be creative drilling and cutting. PM me if you want gory details.

Tolerating a drip depends somewhat on the mineral content of the water. If there is iron, it will turn your tub red where the drips go. As others have said, if Moen or Delta start by replacing the cartridge. It's cheap or free.

 

[RetiredAndLovingIt]

Just a quick suggestion, have you ever had the main water pressure valve to the house checked?
You can do it yourself with a $10 water pressure gauge from Lowes or Home Depot screwed on your faucets to get a pressure reading at different locations.
If it's failed and your water pressure is too high you will have leaks popping up everywhere until you get it fixed.
I found out the hard way after a major flood that the main valve was bad which had caused the burst toilet hose in the first place. After the original flood repairs, they turned on the water and more leaks popped up, apparently no one had bothered to check the valve. I was getting the street pressure of 200 inside the house.
It cost about $800 to have a plumber replace the valve.

 

[JoeWras]

The type of valve is usually not on the spout, but on the escutcheon (round plate) that covers the valve in the center and is against the tile.

An old Delta is easily fixable if you know a few tricks.

I replaced the seals in my 40 year old Delta recently. Delta markets a "rebuild" kit for this, but people say it reduces flow, so I went with just the little spring loaded washers. Parts were less than $10 and it is good as new, with plenty of flow.

This repair can be easy or hard. There are tricks to not ruining the valve if it is old due to threads seizing up with minerals. There are too many details to explain here until we find out more of what you have.

Typical old Delta. See "DELTA" printed on bottom of round plate.

 

[euro]

Stick a bucket under the drip and catch the drips. You might be surprised how much those drips add up over time, which translates into higher water bills (or more electric usage if you're on a well). That's expensive and wasteful. Better to fix a simple problem like this.

+1 to that! A steady drip-drip-drip will amount to many, many gallons a day. Don't be a water waster - it is a precious resource! As others have said, this is often a simple fix. Also, if it is a shower that you never use, I suppose you could just take off the shower head and cap the pipe.

 

[target2019]

Stick a bucket under the drip and catch the drips. You might be surprised how much those drips add up over time, which translates into higher water bills (or more electric usage if you're on a well). That's expensive and wasteful. Better to fix a simple problem like this.

And then use the bucket of water to flush the toilet? Maybe water the plants?

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

I just went through the valve/shower head investigation for a new house. What I learned:

Some, not all valves limit the flow to the shower head. Studying the mfg downloaded tech specs should tell.

Federal govt has limited shower head flow to 2.5gpm, but a number of shower heads are set to 1.5gpm. Don't buy the latter. There are design decisions internal to the heads, but the first limit to flow is typically a washer that is accessible/removable from the input end of the head.

Yep, I JUST went through that this week. Long story short, I got the exact same Delta In2ition shower head to upgrade another bathroom, and it had a noticeably lower water pressure than the older one in the same shower. So I took it apart, found a 1/2 inch rubber O-ring that I removed from the blue plastic insert, and the full pressure is now a bit higher than I like! But I can turn it down a bit, the rest of my family is quite happy.
You can kind of see the black ring inside what looks like green plastic in this image, but what this image doesn't show is that I had to remove a flat rubber washer with a screen attached to it to get to this point:

 

[Romer]

whenever I get a new shower head, I pop out the plastic restrictor that is installed to conserve water. It is easy to do, just remove the shower head

Faucets leaking is almost always the cartridge, but sometimes the rubber spring combo piece. Fortunately they typically come together. Also easy to replace, but you have to shut the main water off first of course. If it is a tub shower combo and you have one control, it will be behind that control. Lots of youtube videos on how to do this

 

[jollystomper]

I would follow the advice that says fix it. You never know if that drip could slowly increase to a more steady stream. I posted on the repair thread how that happened in one of our bathroom faucets, and the culprit was a small defect that the water was steadily wearing away and getting around the washer.

The other factor is, although it is going doing the drain, there is the remote possibility of, should you be away for an extended time, the drain clogging and the drip slowly filling up and spilling out into the bathroom. Very, very unlikely, but not impossible.

I would try the simpler fixes mentioned before looking to open up the wall. Good luck.

 

[jazz4cash]

I'm wonder what are ramifications to leave it status quo. Ok - so there's drip-drip. the drops go into the bathtub drain - - heck, a shower is tons more water than drips every day -- is it as simple as letting it drip? Then I guess the risk is if the valve/faucet gets worse?

It does need to be fixed. I’ve seen many older homes with porcelain sinks/tubs worn bare or permanently stained due to such a leak. I guess you could calculate the cost of the wasted water but don’t forget the cost of sewer charges if any. My local utility charges more to take the water away than to supply it!

https://www.earlsplumbingandheating...ans-Dripping-Faucet-Running-Toilet-Waste.html