Because I’d really love to save some money if possible, but to be honest I’m not the most handy of people. I can, however, follow directions fairly well.
I gots me a leaky shower/bath.
Information I was asked by the guy I called for an estimate:
It was made by Delta and it’s one of those single knob deals where all the way to the right is off, to the left is hot, and cold is somewhere in the middle. Also, when water is being used elsewhere in the house, it doesn’t seem to affect the shower.
It’s the very hot water that leaks for some reason, even though the extreme right position of the knob, (off) is a lot closer to cold than hot.
The estimate I got is $125 for the house call and approx. $60 in parts, which is much more than I can spend comfortably at this time. It’s too late today to get any more estimates, though I will as soon as I get up tomorrow, but my questions for you are:
First, is this a reasonable price or should I expect to be able to do better?
Second, can a layman like myself handle this job? If so, can some kind and knowledgeable doper, in CLEAR and PRECISE fashion, describe to me how to go about it?
When you say “leaks”, you mean that water comes out of the tap even when it’s off, right? As opposed to water leaking from a pipe and soaking through the ceiling below?
If it’s the first, then a handy homeowner can tackle it with the help of a “How to Plumb” book from Home Depot or the local library. There are a few caveats – you’ll need tools, at the very least a screwdriver and adjustable wrench. You’ll have to find the right replacement washers/parts, and Delta makes a trillion different faucets, so that might not be trivial. It’s not unknown for a fairly simple plumbing job to degenerate into a hideous nightmare of escalating catastrophes, particularly if the previous plumbing is old and not up to being yanked around.
(I’ve only ever taken apart the two-faucet type of valve, so take the above with some caution.)
The parts estimate is probably for the ball assembly, plus all replaceable parts, not just what’s worn out now-- That’s not particularly shifty, it would actually save you money, based on the expectation that you’re the sort of person who relies on a plumber to change a washer. When entropy takes it to a certain point, it’s reasonable to assume the other bits will go soon, to-- so why pay for five seperate house-calls every time something new goes?
Just turn off the water at the main and take the thing apart. It’s not much more complicated than replacing a regular washer. (Caveat: I’ve only done this once, and it seemed fairly straightforward to me, but then I’ve always felt comfortable even with biggish jobs like replacing the derned terlet.)
Not much to say about it, except look at how the rocker-stopper works, remember where everything goes, cart the bits down to the hardware store, get new ones, and put the thing back together. Keep an eye out for anything that looks like it might be a model number or, better yet, individual part numbers. I didn’t have a damned clue what to expect when I opened mine up, but it’s fairly obvious when you’re looking at it.
Just have the plumber’s number ready in case of The Unexpected, though, and never try to fix something that “sorta” works unless you’re prepared to go without altogether for a day or two.
I second Finagle, adding only that you will need to find the shutoff valve either for the shower, or barring that, for the entire residence. I have never dealt with that type of faucet either. I’m a real DIY kind of person - I hate paying what seem to me to be exhorbitant rates, and in fact just got done replacing the spigot in the garage.
However, as a cautionary tale, here is what happened when I was replacing the spigot. I first wanted to simply replace the stem, but found that it was easier just to get the new spigot valve. I went to see if the valve was sweated on or simply turned in (I was suspecting the former and hoping for the latter) and even though I was trying to turn it very gently, it was sweated in, and I broke off the pipe at the elbow inside the wall. So I had to break a hole in the plaster of the washroom and try to sweat on a new elbow and length of pipe, replacing the old one with a new fitting on the end to turn in the new spigot. However, I have a house with a main shut off valve that doesn’t completely shut off, which makes sweating nearly impossible. So I had to get a compression fitting, sweat the new assembly together first, and then attach it to the compression fitting. Then everything was fine.
So, long story longer, if you like this sort of thing, have a little time, and can go without water for a bit, go for it. With each job, you’ll get more confident, and if you are in a relationship, there is nothing that with accrue more relationship credits than the power of providing water, electricity and automotive repair. Or they won’t even notice.
For your problem, it is probably just a worn out little gasket or ring, but you don’t know until you get in there.
I will second (third) what already has been said, and add this.
Find a good plumbing supply store in the neighborhood. When you get the old parts out, take all of them dwon there with you. Ask them to supply what they think you will need to do the repair.
The chance of you getting home with all the correct parts that you will need to do the job just increased by about 1000%.
Worth every penny of the extra buck you might spend on the parts.
I’ll 2nd the plumbing supply.If that’s not convenient and an Ace hardware is go there.At least the one close to me-everytime I needed a part (or product) I wasn’t sure of,they nailed it down for me (I also brought the old one with me in the case of parts.)
Forget Home Depot unless you know what you’re looking for specifically.
I’ll say Home Depot’s okay if you know the Home Depot’s quality. Some of them employ real tradesmen that are knowledgeable and helpful. Some of them have little kids running around that can only tell you in which aisle something may be. “My” two Home Depots have a mixture of the two, and, uh, one of them is 24-hour which has been handy more than once in my plumbing adventures!
General hardware stores like Ace or True Value are convenient, but I find they don’t always have what I need.
Finally, I’ve gone into a plumbing supply shop once. It was daunting, and I felt totally out of place mixed in there with all of the professionals (the shopkeeps and customers alike). But I was treated with absolute courtesy, and when I explained what I wanted, I got exactly the indicated parts in the correct quantities. Despite the initial intimidation, I won’t hesitate to go there again.
I won’t describe in detail how my water doesn’t completely shut off at the meter and how I destroyed the run of pipes in my attic while doing the kitchen plumbing myself. I will say that having a 24-hour Home Depot is handy at 3 am, and that I’ve learned a lot about working with galvanized plumbing.
I don’t like doing bath faucets because you have to get behind tiles sometimes & that requires special tools. If you don’t have those tools you can do a job on your tiles.
Thank you all for the very helpful responses. We’re actually going to go with a plumber, since we realized we can stick the landlord with the bill and since I’m going away tonight for a week.
I’m actually a bit disappointed to be honest, since I too am a DIY type who hates to spend money when not completely necessary (even if it isn’t my money), and I would’ve simply liked the opportunity to learn something new.
How did the repair job go, Moe? I bet that all the plumber had to do was replace the “cartridge” in the faucet, but I could be wrong. I’d be interested in knowing what was done. BTW, Larry and Curly weren’t available to help with this project?
Sounds like hermann might be a real plumber, but in this case if you had to ask you were already way out of your depth . . .
I’m not a plumber, T. Slorthrop, but I build a few hundred thousand square feet of buildings every year, and I’ve learned from plumbers I’ve come to know and trust that there actually are only three things you need to know to be a plumber: 1. Shit flows downhill; 2. Cold goes on the right; 3. If you see a DIY repair anywhere nearby, bring it up to code and charge them triple for saving their house.
Anyway, glad it worked out, Moe, without the disaster that was looming . . .
Yep, I’m a “real” plumber, and one thing I’ve learned about repair work is that usually things don’t go as easily as expected. As far as bath or shower faucets go, the brass seat could be pitted, causing a small leak. The one on the hot side is usually the culprit.
Well, I’ll have to tell you after the weekend. The guy’s coming tomorrow and my housemates (only slightly more competent than Larry and Curly (kidding guys, kidding (they sometimes lurk here))) will be there to receive him. I’ll be way up in the NE corner of the US sleeping with hippies. (TMI?)
