Check out some similar questions!

innyanga · Apr 12, 2007, 08:11 PM

We have several dripping taps (faucets) in the house and want to replace the washers.
We cannot remove the escutcheons from the basins despite having tried several methods. We've used a "Boa" tool and a shifting spanner (with cloth wrapped around to prevent scratching the chrome), but neither budged them at all. We've also sprayed WD40 around the base and down the tiny space between escutcheon and handle "spindle", but to no avail.

I understand that the escutcheons become corroded in time, especially in areas where water is hard, and also that you shouldn't apply too much force as this could break the pipe beneath the basin. Are these beliefs correct?

We would greatly appreciate any advice or suggestions as to how to remove these escutcheons so we can replace the old washers. Thank you.

innyanga · Apr 12, 2007, 08:24 PM

We have several dripping taps (faucets) in the house and want to replace the washers.
We cannot remove the escutcheons from the basins despite having tried several methods. We've used a "Boa" tool and a shifting spanner (with cloth wrapped around to prevent scratching the chrome), but neither budged them at all. We've also sprayed WD40 around the base and down the tiny space between escutcheon and handle "spindle", but to no avail.

I understand that the escutcheons become corroded in time, especially in areas where water is hard, and also that you shouldn't apply too much force as this could break the pipe beneath the basin. Are these beliefs correct?

We would greatly appreciate any advice or suggestions as to how to remove these escutcheons so we can replace the old washers. Thank you.

letmetellu · Apr 12, 2007, 08:29 PM

You are right in your beliefs that the escutcheons do become corroded and some time they will not come off with out damage.
Some faucets can be repaired with out taking off the chrome rings, have you looked at it good to see if that might be possible.
Send some information about your faucets and we will try to give you more advice.

innyanga · Apr 12, 2007, 08:45 PM

Thank you very much for your very prompt response!
Unfortunately, it appears impossible to replace the washers without removing the escutcheons. There's no problem removing the screw-on top (showing hot/cold) or the handles, but we can't access the old washers whilst the escutcheons are in place.
The escutcheons are "bell-shaped", so it's really difficult to get a grip on them. This in itself seems like a major design fault, and this style is very common here in Australia.
There are two faucets on each basin, and the outlet is between them.
I've looked underneath the basin (quite a feat, since there is a shelf within the vanity cupboard), and can't see a shut off valve. I believe these are common in the US. I thought we could at least shut off these faucets in the meantime, but don't think this is possible.
It costs a lot just to call out a plumber here, and the hardware store guys suggest this is an easy DIY job, which I'm sure it is - as long as we can access the washers.
If you need any further information, please let me know.
I really appreciate your assistance. Thanks!!
Oh, and please excuse me if I'm using incorrect terminology. I know this differs from country to country, but I have to admit that I know very little about plumbing. I'm also female - does that excuse me?

iamgrowler · Apr 13, 2007, 06:44 AM

I'm also female - does that excuse me?

Don't sell yourself short -- When I'm too busy to take on new projects the two Plumbing shops that top my referral list are both female owned and operated.

speedball1 · Apr 13, 2007, 07:10 AM

Do the cover plates/ escutcheons have a knurled nut on top? What's the brand name of your faucet? If you secede in removing the escutcheon and stem and washer assembly, don't forget to run your finger nail around the seat to check for nicks or rough spots. If you find and the seat will have to be replaced or it will just tear up the new washer. Good luck, Tom

innyanga · Apr 13, 2007, 10:17 AM

No, the escutcheons don't have a knurled nut on top. From top to bottom, there's the little screw-on top (showing hot/cold), the handle, the escutcheon (bell-shaped), then a flat chrome plate which is directly in contact with the basin.
There's no brand name on the actual faucets, but the basin is a Caroma (not sure if that's an Aussie brand, only). Does this mean anything to you?

Have just checked the faucets in the other bathroom, which we also cannot remove. The set up is the same, except the escutcheons sit flush with the basin. There's no flat plate at the base of these. The basin brand is Beautyware.

Thanks for the tip about checking the seat for rough bits. I'll be sure to check this if we can ever get the darn escutcheon off!

Today, a friend gave me a cloth made of a synthetic material that allows the user to gain good purchase on most surfaces. I tried it tonight, and one of the escutcheons did move a little. He also suggested dripping vinegar into the space between the handle and escutcheon to see if that would loosen the scale build up. Do you think that might help?
What about pouring boiling water over the faucet to cause expansion?

Thanks again for your help.

innyanga · Apr 13, 2007, 10:37 AM

Originally Posted by iamgrowler

Don't sell yourself short -- When I'm too busy to take on new projects the two Plumbing shops that top my referral list are both female owned and operated.

Hi iamgrowler, and thank you for your comment. My father was an electrician and taught me at an early age the basic tasks that anyone can do, such as changing plugs, fuses, etc. However, I somehow missed out on Plumbing 101.
I just think that replacing washers is something anyone should be able to do.
After this task is complete, the next one is to fix the toilet, which runs into the bowl. We turn it off at the wall after the cistern has filled up, but this is a real band aid solution. This problem will be the subject of another Question.

This site is terrific. Thank you to those who have responded thus far. It's much appreciated.

Janis

speedball1 · Apr 13, 2007, 02:55 PM

If I were faced with this problem on any chrome fitting I would use a strap wrench,(see image). We use those on stubborn tub spouts, chrome shower heads,etc. Load the stem with WD-40 and see if you can turn the escutcheon out counterclockwise with the strap wrench. Good luck, Tom

innyanga · Apr 13, 2007, 08:25 PM

Hi Tom

I can see from your posted image that the strap wrench is what we have. Ours is a British brand and called a "Boa". I referred to this in my initial question. Unfortunately, we have tried using this a number of times, but to no avail. The escutcheon is "bell-shaped", so it's difficult to gain purchase on it using anything. As I said, this seems a major design fault, since one should assume that at some point it will be necessary to replace washers.

We've now managed to remove the "cold" faucet escutcheon using the synthetic cloth I've mentioned. The "hot" faucet is the leaky one, and we still can't shift that at all.

Upon examination of the removed escutcheon, we can see that the threaded part is close to the top of the "bell". There is no thread around the base. The threaded part is just under 1 inch wide. The thread circles the inside of the escutcheon, but on the "nut" (don't know the proper name) to which the escutcheon screws, the thread does NOT form a complete circle. This is because the "nut" is not round, but has two flat sides. Can you picture this?

From what I've just said, is there a better way to tackle this problem?

Anyway, it's clear that the problem is corrosion or mineral build up. Our water is quite hard (lime scale in kettles. Etc). We have tried WD40, boiling water, and vinegar, but still cannot move the "hot" faucet escutcheon even a fraction. Is there anything else we can try that might have a freeing effect on this corrosion?

I really appreciate your help. Thank you.

Cheers

Janis

speedball1 · Apr 14, 2007, 06:41 AM

Well Janis,
You have tried just about everything to get the escutcheon out without marking it up. Time to get down and dirty. Get a bite near the top of the plate with a set of vice-grip pliers and use brute force to turn the plate out.I realize this will mark up the chrome but you're about out of options. One last "Hail Mary" try that you might attempt would be to heat up the top/threads of the plate with a torch and hope it expands enough to loosen the threads up so you can back the plate out. Good luck, Tom

innyanga · Apr 15, 2007, 07:25 PM

Hi Tom

Thanks for your further response.
Eureka! I'm glad to be able to tell you that we finally managed to remove both escutcheons. Not sure, but think it was the result of using a combination of methods, and using them frequently over a few days. On the "hot" faucet, it appears that the top threads were a little damaged, so this wouldn't have helped! The previous owners did some wacky things when they built the extension onto the old house, and were often klutzy in their DIY attempts. Eleven years later, we're still finding evidence of this.

Anyway, we replaced both washer valves with the "easy turn off" type used for people with arthritis (recommended by the hardware guy in the plumbing section). They're not flat, but look like one-third of a sphere. Do you know what I mean? Each has a small black O ring (or washer?) that sits on the stem of the valve.

We didn't replace the body washer - should we have? They looked OK, just slightly indented where they'd been pressed against the washer valve (not sure of correct term).

Both faucets are now fine, though it seems necessary to turn them off more than I'd thought with the new "easy turn off" valves.

The problem now is that we're finding water is dripping below the basin, onto the shelf below. This is definitely a new thing. It appears to be coming from the point where the basin pipe joins the basin. It's not a dripping a great deal, but will obviously build up. We're going away for three weeks on Wednesday, so this is really a concern.

Could we have caused this by shifting the basin a little when trying to wrench off the escutcheons? Could you suggest what we could do to fix this, please? We're a little nervous of unscrewing the collar where the pipe fits into the basin in case we make matters worse.

Thanks again for your help. It is very much appreciated.

Cheers

Janis

speedball1 · Apr 16, 2007, 07:47 AM

The problem now is that we're finding water is dripping below the basin, onto the shelf below. This is definitely a new thing. It appears to be coming from the point where the basin pipe joins the basin.

You're going to hafta fill me fill me in a little better then that. We got to coime together on terms.
Supply pipe= the pipe that pipes water to the faucet.
Basin pipe= the pipe that drains the basin
Which is it? Please explain in detail what's leaking and exactly where it's leaking from? Cheers Tom

innyanga · Apr 16, 2007, 08:11 AM

Hi Tom

Glad to see your response!

It appears to be leaking from underneath the basin, at the point where the PVC piping screws onto the bottom of the plug-hole. So, I guess it's the basin pipe.

Just beneath the basin, there's a PVC "collar" around the basin pipe (right at the top). It appears to be leaking from this point.

Please let me know if you need a clearer explanation.

Thanks a lot, Tom.

Cheers

Janis

innyanga · Apr 16, 2007, 11:08 PM

Originally Posted by innyanga

Hi Tom

Glad to see your response!

It appears to be leaking from underneath the basin, at the point where the PVC piping screws onto the bottom of the plug-hole. So, I guess it's the basin pipe.

Just beneath the basin, there's a PVC "collar" around the basin pipe (right at the top). It appears to be leaking from this point.

Please let me know if you need a clearer explanation.

Thanks a lot, Tom.

Cheers

Janis

Hi Tom and all

We're leaving here tomorrow, so need to fix the leak today. If you could possibly help it would be greatly appreciated.
We're thinking we'll need to unscrew the collar, add plumbers tape (teflon, I think), then re-screw the collar.
We'll turn off the water main tap (faucet) into the property before, of course, but are we still risking a geyser when we unscrew the basin pipe from the basin? If so, how do we avoid this happening, please?

Thanks again.

Cheers

Janis

letmetellu · Apr 17, 2007, 07:16 PM

If you have not found a way to get the escutcheons off by now I have one suggestion. And that is to use a soft towel to protect the chrome, thin use what we call a crescent wrench, adjust it so that it will fit on two of the flat areas of the escutcheon, yes I know that if you try to turn it the wrench is going to slip upward and eventually off the chrome, here is my answer to that have some one to help you and as you turn the wrench counter clockwise, have them press the wrench down as hard as they can, hopefully enough to make the escutcheon turn before the wrench slips up. If by chance this helps good If not I have one more suggestion.

speedball1 · Apr 18, 2007, 03:54 PM

Originally Posted by innyanga

Hi Tom and all

We're leaving here tomorrow, so need to fix the leak today. If you could possibly help it would be greatly appreciated. Just beneath the basin, there's a PVC "collar" around the basin pipe (right at the top). It appears to be leaking from this point.
We're thinking we'll need to unscrew the collar, add plumbers tape (teflon, I think), then re-screw the collar.
We'll turn off the water main tap (faucet) into the property before, of course, but are we still risking a geyser when we unscrew the basin pipe from the basin? If so, how do we avoid this happening, please?

Thanks again.

Cheers

Janis

Hey Janis,

No need to "unscrew the collar". Simply snug up the collar and the leak should stop. No need to teflon tape the threads. They don't hold the water.
Shutting off the water to the house when you leave is the best,( and cheapest) insurance you'll ever get. If you ever came home to a pressure leak that's been running for a week or so you'll see what I mean.
Have a great holiday! Tom

innyanga · May 23, 2007, 01:46 AM

Hi Tom

My apologies for not having responded to your post prior to now. We'd already left for our vacation, so I didn't see your reply until our return.

Unfortunately, we couldn't shut off the water to the house, because we had to have the auto reticulation working whilst we were away - otherwise we'd have returned to a dead garden!

The basin pipe is still dripping, albeit slowly. I wrapped several towels around the pipe, so that absorbed any water. As you can see, the drip is minimal when the faucets are not in use. However, now the basin is being used again, the puddle below the basin pipe is larger. Obviously, the leak needs to be fixed.

I note that you said: "No need to unscrew the collar. Simply snug up the collar and the leak should stop. No need to teflon tape the threads. They don't hold the water."

Could you explain what you mean by "snug up the collar", please? I'm assuming you mean to use a material other than teflon tape, but not sure what to use, or how to do this without unscrewing the collar.

Thanks for your holiday wishes. Yes, we had a great time.

Best regards

Janis

speedball1 · May 24, 2007, 06:26 AM

I note that you said: "No need to unscrew the collar. Simply snug up the collar and the leak should stop. No need to teflon tape the threads. They don't hold the water."

"Could you explain what you mean by "snug up the collar", please? I'm assuming you mean to use a material other than teflon tape, but not sure what to use, or how to do this without unscrewing the collar."

Let's get together on terms. That "collar" you speak of is called a "compression nut" and it's not the threads that stop the leak but the pressure against the gasket that stops a leak.
By "sung up the collar" I meant to remove the teflon tape from the threads and tighten the nut until the drip stops. Good luck, Tom