The cold water stem came completely out when I was turning it on- I went and got a new stem and repaced that one. Water pressure was not good- so figured I needed to replace the hot water side. Did that and now only a dribble of water will come out of the spout. In addition- both stems continue to leak (which they did before) when turned off. When I tried to remove them to see what was wrong, the rubber part of each valve had popped out-I feel like an idiot- cannot shower- help!

Can you give us the brand and number of the faucet and if possible a picture.

That would give a better chance of helping you.

They are sayco stems- sorry, don't have the numbers or a pic to give you- but noticed they sell diverters also that are similar. What I did was take the old stem to True Value and the guy there matched it up from the old corroded piece

These stems are the compression type, right? The type with a washer on the end, not the cartridge with "O" rings.

When you turn the handle to open the faucet so water will comew out how many turns will it make? I am thinking that the stems may be too long and will not let the rebber washer lift off the seat.

Well, when I could get water, it wouldn't come out immediately- so are you thinking I need to get the same type of stem- but shorter version? I was reading about getting some teflon tape to wrap around the threads also- as the newly intalled stems are still leaky when supposed to be off- what do you think?

Yes, compression type

There are a couple of things I see here:

1. The packing wasn't replaced around the stem. This is a cause of external leaks.
2. Internal leaks can be due to bad seats. Seats can be reamed. There is a tool to do that. Or, one can have the wrong washer.

More importantly, it's possible they were not installed properly. Usually one would bottom the stem and then put on the packing washer and nut. SLightly snug the nut, and see if you can back out the stem.

Check for leaks. Tighten packing nut until leak stops and be sure you can more the valve.

There are a couple of things I see here:

1. The packing wasn't replaced around the stem. This is a cause of external leaks.
2. Internal leaks can be due to bad seats. Seats can be reamed. There is a tool to do that. Or, one can have the wrong washer.

More importantly, it's possible they were not installed properly. Usually one would bottom the stem and then put on the packing washer and nut. SLightly snug the nut, and see if you can back out the stem.

Check for leaks. Tighten packing nut until leak stops and be sure you can more the valve.

When installing this type stem always make sure that they are in the open position. Otherwise the washer hits the seat before the stem is screwed all the way in. The continued pressure of the screwing the stem in will cut the washer into. Sounds like that has happened.

Suggest that you get a seat wrench and replace the seats. The seats are the surface which the washers press against to seal off the water. They get scratches or groves worn in them after a period. That sounds like the source of the original leak. Remove the ones you have now and take to hardware store. There is probably a thousand and one different sizes, threads and shapes.

Oh god, Tom is going to kill me for this,, but, when at first you don't succeed(especially with old washer and seat valves) simply replace the valve with a newer version. Maybe the government will come up with a cash for old fixture faucets so you can upgrade.lol.

Just reread you post. Could be that you were sold the incorrect stem. Check against the original. If not the same reinstall the original with new washer, stem packing and grease. Unless damaged it will be as good as the new one.

Lee's got too much money. He got a government bail out.:D:D

OK, thanks everyone for your answers so far. I am now going to go to Ace hardware with the old and one of the new stems I got and have the guy there look at the old one and new one and see if I need another new set completely or what. If the new ones are a match to the old ones, I am going to get new stem packing for them and try again. What "grease" do you mean- would WD40 on the stem work? I am going to make sure to install whatever stems in the open position also- wish me luck, I am tired of all the mess and not being able to take a shower (I hate tub baths).

Not WD40. It is called Plumbers grease. WD40 is a great product but it isn't a lubricant. It's a water displacement product (hence the WD).

What kind of tool are you using to in stall the stems.