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jayhawk · Mar 5, 2006, 04:53 PM

I moved into a house with what appears to be a little used shower. I get good water pressure, both hot and cold, from all other parts of the house except the shower. It is just a trickle in the tub and will not keep the diverter in place.

Is there any easy way to fix this problem? I have a hot and cold valves (2) and the diverter is on the tub spout. I have access on the back siide if I cut into the wallboard. Suggestions?

Thanks

speedball1 · Mar 6, 2006, 06:37 AM

Originally Posted by jayhawk

I moved into a house with what appears to be a little used shower. I get good water pressure, both hot and cold, from all other parts of the house except the shower. It is just a trickle in the tub and will not keep the diverter in place.

Is there any easy way to fix this problem? I have a hot and cold valves (2) and the diverter is on the tub spout. I have access on the back siide if I cut into the wallboard. Suggestions??

Thanks

Hi Jay,
Don't cut into the wall just yet.
Something's disturbed the crud built up in your pipe walls and now the T/S valve has sucked it up and it's now blocking the supplies and seats. Turn off the water to the valve and remove bott hot and cold stem and washer assemblies(see image, this image has the diverter in the valve but the rest is typical.). Now take a stiff wire and poke it through a seat and supply while someone tiuns the water back on. Do this to both hot and cold seats. You should have a full stream of water coming out after you flushed out the valve and supplies. Do you? If so reassemble and test. If not then click on back. Regards, Tom

jayhawk · Mar 12, 2006, 09:06 AM

Speedball: I did as you suggested, got good pressure out of the hot and cold without the valves. Re-installed the valves and a trickle at best. It has Grohe on the plastic handles. Are these valves universal? Suggestions?

speedball1 · Mar 12, 2006, 11:00 AM

Originally Posted by jayhawk

Speedball: I did as you suggested, got good pressure out of the hot and cold without the valves. Re-installed the valves and a trickle at best. It has Grohe on the plastic handles. Are these valves universal? Suggestions?

Since I don't know if the stems are the same ones I have pictured or cartridges I can't be of much help. The replacements are not universal and must be matched to the valve. It would nelp if you could describe the stems.
Regards, Tom

jayhawk · Mar 12, 2006, 11:36 AM

All Brass Stems are 4" long, 1/4 inch wide with splines on the hot/cold selection end, they fit into a coupling that screws into the diverter. The size is 1/2". Rubber gaskets on the large end are 5/8". Cannot find any numbers on either the shaft or the other parts. There is an expansion pin that holds the shaft in to the larger piece. A smaller piece screws onto the shaft at one end (this has the rubber gasket). Does this help?

speedball1 · Mar 12, 2006, 01:37 PM

Ok, You have stem and washer assemblies. Have you ran your fingernail around the seats for rough spots or nicks? Here's the patr rhat has me confused, "All Brass Stems are 4" long, 1/4 inch wide with splines on the hot/cold selection end, they fit into a coupling that screws into the diverter."

You told me the diverter was on the spout. Are you now saying that it's like the one pictured? Tom

jayhawk · Mar 12, 2006, 04:23 PM

No, diverter is in the tub spout sorry. I put everything back together.

Further, I took a hose and hooked it up to a water supply on the shower and forced water down to the tub spout. Water came out in a good stream. I did this on all openings, the hot, cold and the stub that fills up the tub to make water come out the shower. All seem OK. I put everything back together and still got the same result, just a trickle out of the tub spout. Valves looked OK. It seems from before and after that the valves are not opening. I took them out again and rolled them in and out several times, put them back in, turned on the water valve and still the same result, just a trickle. When the valves are closed, no water comes out. When the valves are open only a trickle.

Further suggestions?

speedball1 · Mar 12, 2006, 05:07 PM

I can pull nothing out of Grohes web site in the way of replacement stems.

Try reversing the stems. If the coupling on the stem isn't screwed tigh enough itwill prevent the washer from opening. I'm flying blind here with out factory specs. On the valve. Let me know if any of that helps. Regards. Tom

jayhawk · Mar 16, 2006, 06:25 PM

Called a plumber. He said the valves appeared to be OK but a piece of rust was in the mixer somewhere. Knocked the crap out of the mixer (as best he could without hurting the shower sides) put in the valves and now we have water from both sides.

Question: Could I poor some CLR (Calcium, Lime and Rust remover) down the shower spout, let it sit to dissolve the rust and then flush it out by turning on the water?

Thanks.

speedball1 · Mar 17, 2006, 06:40 AM

Question: Could I poor some CLR (Calcium, Lime and Rust remover) down the shower spout, let it sit to dissolve the rust and then flush it out by turning on the water?

Yes you may, but it sounds like the crud has already worked its way out of the valve body. Glad to see you're back in business. Tom