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charmins67 · Jun 7, 2008, 12:34 PM

I am getting no hot water from my tub faucet. When I turn the faucet to the hot water,it trickles out ant its not even warm. I replaced the cartridge and no luck. The water line going upstairs to the tub is hot.I know this since the ceiling below has been removed due to a broken drain pipe. There is hot water to all other faucets in the house upstairs and down.
I'm out of ideas and I have searched the internet.
By the way I do not know the exact model of the faucet,just that it is a Moen single lever.
House is 100 years old,plumbing upstairs about 30.

ballengerb1 · Jun 7, 2008, 01:47 PM

Moen warranties their products for like so you can get a free cartrdige from them by calling their customer help number. Since you already pciked one up its too late to save you some money but lets see if we can save you some time. Remove the new cartridge after shutting off the main and opening the valve. Hold a toel tightly over the open valve body and have someone turn the main on and then off. Come back and tell us if you had good pressure and di more debris blow out of the line. Has it been awhile sice you flushed your water heater, I think its due.

charmins67 · Jun 7, 2008, 02:38 PM

Well I tried twice so far. I am alone at the for the day and my shut off is in the basement at the well pump,so I turned on the water,turned it off and went upstairs and removed the cartridge- a small plastic piece from old cartridge came out but not much else. Just replaced all tile,so Im trying to do whatever I can not to have to remove it. I'll try again once someone is home to help. The faulty faucet is in the upper unit of a duplex(of course)
Thanks

speedball1 · Jun 7, 2008, 02:51 PM

I turned on the water,turned it off and went upstairs and removed the cartridge- a small plastic piece from old cartridge came out but not much else.

Ahhh! But did you have someone turn the water back on for a moment, while the valve was open and the cartridge was out, to flush out the rest of the debris that was left in there? If not then do it and get back to me. Good luck. Tom

charmins67 · Jun 7, 2008, 03:32 PM

As soon as someone can help I will try,then get back to you. Thanks

charmins67 · Jun 8, 2008, 06:01 AM

Well I had someone turn the water on for a minute while I was upstairs at the faucet. The cartridge was removed and all that came out was water-no debris.
Is it possible that the water line could be completely blocked? It hasn't been used for 4 months,was fine then. Like I said before,I can feel the hot water line and it is hot,so Im guessing if it is blocked its near the faucet.

speedball1 · Jun 8, 2008, 06:09 AM

If all that came out was cold water and the line's hot up to the faucet I would shut the water off again and remove the cartridge. I would then poke a wire doiwn the hot water supply to break up any debris that's blocking the line and then flush it out. Good luck, Tom

charmins67 · Jun 8, 2008, 09:51 AM

Well, I tried to clear the blockage. The pipes are hot up to a certain point so I know where it is,just can't clear it. Next step I guess is calle someone who knows how to solder ,cut out the affected area and go from there. Ugh-- plumbing is not my thing

speedball1 · Jun 8, 2008, 10:10 AM

Sorry We couldn't locate the blockage. Let me know what the plumber finds. Regards, Tom

ballengerb1 · Jun 8, 2008, 01:44 PM

Where exactly is " hot up to a certain point " Is there a valve or anything at this point?

charmins67 · Jun 9, 2008, 11:16 AM

Basically, looks like plumbing was done by diy-er some time ago. It is just a + with the hot water on left and cold water on right. No shut off valves on either side. Only way to shut off water to upstairs is to shut off all water at the main-we have a well and we have to shut it off at the pump. I took out the cartridge that I just replaced and tried to remove the debris with a wire hanger,but it only can go so far. I was hoping that the new cartridge would do the trick,but not.
It is hot up the hot water pipe around the elbow and then it feels cold to where it is to come out. It hasn't been used in about 4-5 months as we were remodleling(did not do any plumbing) .

ballengerb1 · Jun 9, 2008, 12:37 PM

OK rather than a coat hanger lets try something that can go around a 90 elbow inside the pipe. Do you have any pipe cleaners or something similar? Try that because if the blockage isn't broken loose you made need to cut open the line or unsweat the fitting. Do you have a source of compressed air or suction> You could try to blow air or water back done the hot line if the main is closed and other hot faucets are opened. Suction may work if you set the valve like in the last scenario and use a strong shop vac with a reducing nozzle.

charmins67 · Jun 9, 2008, 01:15 PM

I tried a drain brush. Its small in diameter but I couldn't get it to go very far either. I also tried to blow air into it with my air compressor-no luck. Its hard to get at since its not a straight shot to the hot water pipe. I'm guessing that the piece of pipe that has the blockage will have to be cut out and a new piece put in its place. However I can't solder to save my life,so I have a call into a plumber. Don't know how long it will be since everyone is backed up with more pressing issues due to the flooding here. I will keep trying until I hear from the plumber.

ballengerb1 · Jun 9, 2008, 05:30 PM

If you solder like my dad then you could always use a Sharkbite. I'm not 100% sure they are OK for inside an enclosed wall, I know compression is not code in a wall.

charmins67 · Jun 13, 2008, 07:03 AM

Apparently ,no blockage. I purchased a defective cartridge. Replaced and everything is fine except that I already removed a tile and now have to try to replace it. (No backerboard behind it-came out with the tile)

speedball1 · Jun 14, 2008, 09:24 AM

Glad everything's working but I still have questions.

apparently ,no blockage. I purchased a defective cartridge.

I don't understand how a defective cartridge would prevent hot water from the supply from entering the open valve body.

It is hot up the hot water pipe around the elbow and then it feels cold to where it is to come out.

There ain't no way that this doesn't describe a blockage in the hot water line. Something cleared that hot water supply and it wasn't a new cartridge. I want to know what happened. Regards, Tom

charmins67 · Jun 14, 2008, 09:28 AM

I flushed it again -a lot of black junk came out-and I had hot water until I put the cartridge back in and turned it on. So it was a combination of both. (?? ) In either case,I now have hot water in the I=upper unit

speedball1 · Jun 14, 2008, 12:10 PM

Now let's take care of that junk that's in your hot water heater.

For long life and fewer troubles you should keep your heater clear of mineral build-up by FLUSHING NOT DRAINING on a regular schedule. Attach a hose to the boiler drain at the bottom of the tank. With the pressure on, open the boiler drain and let it run until the water runs clear. You will see a spurt of red,(rust) followed by white or yellow grains,(lime or calcium carbonate). This shouldn't take more then a few minutes. Do this monthly to keep it clear. Now flush out your hot water lines on ALL fixtures that are affected . Now pull each aerator and clean the screens. Be sure you put them back togather the same way you took them out. Don't forget to flush it out every month. Your heater will thank you for it. Hope this helps, Tom