Typically those valves installed at the shower head are designed to have a trickle when off to remind you to turn off the water when you’re done with the shower. And the same with shower heads with an off feature. They don’t really go all the way off. But there are ones that can turn completely off, like this one:
It’s essentially the same as the one the plumber installed, but it can turn completely off rather than leave a trickle. It doesn’t take any special tools or skill to install it. As long as you can shut off the water yourself, you should be able to install this shutoff valve on your own.
Based on those photos, I think what’s behind those two faucets/taps is something like this and that’s what the plumber says needs to be replaced, for a proper repair. It seems like it should be possible to do so, although of course the tile and backer board would need to be replaced after the repair. Do you have any handy friends?
Handy, yes, but not that handy. And the cost of the materials and tool rental are still stumbling blocks for that level of job.
Ripping up the wall is a serious mental block, I have to admit. If this were, say, in a closet, I’d certainly attempt to replace the entire valve system assembly myself (assuming no cutting/welding pipe). Although my past failure at fixing a valve stem has kind of warned me off further attempts at complicated plumbing repair.
I get that. We had a contractor trying to repair a problem in our home. He was 80% sure he could access the area he needed via a hole in our living room wall. He cut out an inspection area and he was wrong! So he instituted plan B and all went well. Had we not mentioned the hole he would have left it.
For your shower, I’d use a hammer and chisel to remove some tile, then drill a hole and use a keyhole saw. You can do it in stages, taping a tarp up so you can use the shower, or go from the other bathroom.
But first, ask friends if any are more comfortable than you are doing the job.
That reminds me; the main bathtub/shower at my parents’ house had plastic sheeting up against the shower for a while when the tile was incomplete.
And someone suggested one of those plastic tub/shower surrounds. That’s not my first choice, but if your budget is limited and tiling is beyond you, that’s one way to get a watertight shower.
Since this is a leak behind a wall, I would recommend getting a pro to do it. Any problems or leaks will be sealed up and will be hard to correct. If it leaks, you likely won’t notice it for some time and there’s the possibility of significant water damage. If this was something more accessible like a sink or toilet, then doing yourself would be fine. You you could easily spot and fix any problems before they became major issues. But this is something which would be challenging to redo if something didn’t go right. And the actual fix will likely have some challenges, such as limited work space, soldering with a torch, figuring out the right parts, etc.
I would recommend repairing the hole yourself. You don’t need a pro to do that. You can put up the backing board and redo the tiles yourself. You wouldn’t even necessarily need to redo the whole shower. Those look like pretty standard white tiles you can get anywhere. You could likely just remove the 3x3 section or so of tiles necessary to get behind the wall to the valve and then just redo that one section. You still have to do that properly–you don’t want water seeping through–but it’s pretty straightforward to do it right.
A shower surround is a simple solution but I don’t think repairing the tiles is all that hard either. Getting the backer board in is quite easy these days, you don’t need even need heavy cement board. Once you have some tile backing in you do can do a quick an easy job to make it watertight using any kind of tile and silicone caulk instead of grout and mastic. Then you have time to find the right tiles and finish it off in the future. You really do have a lot of choices here for both the plumbing and the shower wall repair.
If you can’t afford the repair, you may be able to obtain assistance to get it done. I think there are programs aimed at the elderly, veterans and others with limited incomes. You might check around in your area, such as through social service organizations or church groups.
You say the cold water knob keeps on turning in your hand when you shut off the shower? It’s possible the knob is broken in such a way that you can turn the cold water on but can’t shut it all the way off. Do you know how to take the knob off? In case you don’t – there’s a cap on the front of the knob (usually the “C” or “H” is on it) held in by tension. If you take a folding knife or something similar (a single-edge razor blade would work just fine, but BE CAREFUL!) you can work it underneath the cap and pop it/work it off. Under the cap you’ll find a screw. Unscrew the screw (how’s about putting a towel over the drain first – screws have a mind of their own and love heading for an open drain first chance they get). When the screw’s free, you should be able to pull the knob towards you and off. Get a small to medium adjustable wrench and fasten to the stem the knob was attached to (pliers will work, too). See if you can turn the stem all the way “Off”. If yes, replace the knob, yer done. If not, replacing the stem will probably eliminate the problem, but that’s a procedure you’ll have to tackle when I get back from lunch. Good luck.
Not quite this. For all intents and purposes, the cold water tap is always on full throttle. The cold-water valve stem is ruined and the cold-water knob has no effect at all.
I assume there is some reason why the plumber was unable to replace the valve stem and the seat? Because that’s very doable, even without damaging the wall surface.
Well, it’s possible the cold water knob is completely stripped; you could still try the above procedure and see if a wrench on the valve stem turns the water off. Beating dead horse: finished.
Our shower leaks badly – more like it runs continuously (enough to quadruple our water bill). The cold-water valve stem is ruined in such a way that it cannot be shut off. Two plumbers have told us that a piece “on the back of the stem” broke off and fell behind the wall. Therefore, about a 2’ x 3’ section of tile and drywall has to be removed to replace the shower’s plumbing. Then the drywall and tile would be replaced.
Thank you for considering my OP and posting your contribution. I am satisfied that the issue is not with the knob itself.
Additionally I’ve had a bad valve stem replaced in this same shower in recent years. Initially, I was hoping that’s all the current situation would require, but no dice.
It may be possible that the two plumbers are lying to my face, and I should seek out a third opinion.
To go in a different direction, is it possible to refinance your home and pull out enough money to fix the plumbing problems in both bathrooms? Interest rates are really low, and this is going to have to be done eventually. You couldn’t sell the house like this. Pulling money out for cosmetic repairs is iffy, but this is really central to the functionality of your house.
Good luck.