Gaah Leaky Faucet is Driving Me Insane

[russ_watters]

looks like that nut just below the removable stop screws the whole valve stem out.

http://www.doityourself.com/icat/kholersterlhotstem

So, more torque then? Hmm... I'm going to need another beer first.

 

[lisab]

So, more torque then? Hmm... I'm going to need another beer first.

Seriously...1-800-JOE-PLUMBER...

 

[Proton Soup]

So, more torque then? Hmm... I'm going to need another beer first.

it's what I would do, but I'm taking no responsibility for it. please turn off the supply first.

i honestly don't see how you'd get much torque out of a nut-driver either, unless you've got a grip that makes pro wrestlers wince.and who knows, maybe the thread is lefty?

 

[Moonbear]

and who knows, maybe the thread is lefty?

That part I can't remember from the last time I fixed a faucet. It is possible that they are threaded in reverse, in which case it's now extra-tight. But hey, maybe that's why it stopped dripping now.

 

[Proton Soup]

That part I can't remember from the last time I fixed a faucet. It is possible that they are threaded in reverse, in which case it's now extra-tight. But hey, maybe that's why it stopped dripping now.

it's also possible that one is threaded one way, and the other opposite. kind of like bicycle pedals.

 

[Cyrus]

it's also possible that one is threaded one way, and the other opposite. kind of like bicycle pedals.

Oh god. Learned that one the hard way. I took one pedal off, and made the other one on there with the jaws of life. I took it to the bike shop and told the guy this damn thing won't come off. This big 250lb guy had one hell of a time undoing what I did...I was just like whistle (doot-de-doot-doo-doo) why I have no idea how it got that tight!?

 

[undrcvrbro]

In response to the OP: I know exactly what you are going through. The sink in my dorm drips constantly(every second or so) if you don't turn the handles really hard when you are done using it. It gets aggravating when my roommate comes in at 12:30 or so and leaves the room without turning the faucet off all the way.

 

[Redbelly98]

Russ, in case you missed it, lisa's suggestion would at least allow you to sleep.

I can't help with the plumbing, but if it's the drip-drip-drip that's driving you crazy, I have a short-term solution.

Try running a string or yarn from the faucet down to the drain. Then the water will run down the thread - at least you won't hear the drip. Pre-wet it so the water will adhere better.

 

[BobG]

That's the one I got a nut driver over and applied a bunch of torque to. I heard some creaking, but it didn't break loose - I'm not even sure it is supposed to.

Is that for the hot water? It doesn't look old enough to be permanently stuck, but it's possible it will never budge. You can try some different chemicals on it. PB Blaster works pretty well. You can also try a breaker bar - just make sure all the force is supplying torque instead of prying the entire faucet one way or the other. It's going to be really hard to break the pipe if you're just applying rotational torque.

Personally, if it stopped dripping then I'd quite messing with it.

 

[LightbulbSun]

I repaired/replaced ALL of the plumbing in my old house! I'm actually really good!

I can even tear out a tile wall in the shower and replace pipe and replace the drywall and re-tile. I had a neat little tile scribe to cut the tiles to fit.

Don't let me near electrical wiring though. Even though my dad was an electrical engineer and showed me how to do household wiring, I have a fear of electrical wiring.

I'm pretty decent with electrical wiring after doing a ton of it with my dad over the summer.

 

[Moonbear]

Personally, if it stopped dripping then I'd quite messing with it.

Me too. I'd file away the rest of the information on how to fix it in case it starts dripping again, but if it responded to a good talking-to, then it doesn't need fixing anymore.

 

[edward]

Faucets will occasionally drip because there is a small piece of debris or grit that comes through the water line and sticks in the washer.

It will even happen in a cartridge type stems because they still have O rings that make the seal.

Turning the faucet to full on then off a few times very often stops the drip.

As a last resort only: Sometimes a stem or even a bolt that is frozen can be broken loose by turning it in both directions slightly until you can feel movement.

 

[DEW]

I'm really bad at DIY but I had a problem with one of the basin taps in the bathroom, whereby it kept dripping. There's no way I can take a tap apart so I gave the on/off handle part of the tap, where is joins onto the actual tap, a really good squirt of WD40, left well alone for an hour or two, and it worked. Tap works and no more drips.

 

[russ_watters]

Personally, if it stopped dripping then I'd quite messing with it.

Yes, that's the approach I took. It's still partially disassembled, but I'm not doing anything more with it.

 

[Art]

On a somewhat related subject isn't there a part of chaos theory that says if you know the time intervals of 9 drips of water you can accurately predict the tenth??

 

[Integral]

Listen to Moonbear she has it nailed.

Russ if the water is off to the faucet how could you flood anything?

Watch out for the brass nuts they are easily damaged. Use a deep socket or a appropriately sized box end. Do NOT use a crescent unless there is absolutely no other recourse.

 

[Moonbear]

Listen to Moonbear she has it nailed.

I wish it weren't just faucets.

Russ if the water is off to the faucet how could you flood anything?

I think he was worried about breaking something so he couldn't turn the water back on without it flooding...in case it turned into a bigger project that required digging into the shower wall to get to the plumbing.

Watch out for the brass nuts they are easily damaged.

Am I the only one who sees the joke in this remark?

 

[turbo]

Am I the only one who sees the joke in this remark?

Is there a monkey involved? In that case a monkey wrench might be an appropriate choice of tools.

 

[russ_watters]

Russ if the water is off to the faucet how could you flood anything?

I was joking around a little - my primary concern was breaking a pipe or solder joint. If it starts leaking again, I'll buy a valve stem before doing anything else. Once I have that part, I should be able to see how to get the existing one out. I was at Lowes today and they didn't seem to have one for my faucet, but they were only like $10, so not a big deal even if I just end up using it as an instruction manual.

 

[Redbelly98]

Watch out for the brass nuts they are easily damaged.

Am I the only one who sees the joke in this remark?

Hey, this could go in the "What's in your man-bag" thread.

 

[BobG]

On a somewhat related subject isn't there a part of chaos theory that says if you know the time intervals of 9 drips of water you can accurately predict the tenth??

You might be able to tell the temperature. You'd have to figure out the expansion/contraction for the different parts, but the gap allowing the water to drip should change with temperature.

In practice, I guess you could just chart the temperature vs drip rate over a period of time, but since everything is going to be pretty close to room temperature, you probably won't see a huge variation.

I suggest turning off heat to the house. That will create a bigger variation in temperature.

 

[Redbelly98]

... and then Russ could turn the thermostat up to 110 F, or better yet 120 if there are no elderly, infants, or infirm members of the household.

A large temperature difference is key here.

 

[NeoDevin]

He could turn the temperature up sufficiently that the drops of water evaporate before hitting the tub, thus eliminating the noise...

 

[Proton Soup]

nah, just wrap a towel over the spigot and be done with it

 

[Redbelly98]

I would worry about the towel catching fire in those hot temperatures.

 

[Moonbear]

Hey, this could go in the "What's in your man-bag" thread.

 

[Danger]

I don't really want to have a freely spinning knob, but I might have to live with it.

Your girlfriend might appreciate it.

 

[Evo]

Russ, all you have to do is contact TAPS the ghost hunting Roto Rooter guys and tell them you hear a strange tapping sound coming from your bathroom and you think it could be a ghost, because when they investigate a haunting, they also fix minor plumbing problems.

I'm not making this up.

 

[ozgurakkas]

Call kohler.
Order a new piece
When it arrives,
First turn the water supply off.
Open a faucet so you can take the water pressure out inside the pipe.
Go back to the faucet.
Take out the nut at the top of the handle.
Take the inner part out. Be easy...
Then take the new one and replace with the old part.
Make sure new piece placed in correctly.
Put the nut back and tight it.
Turn on the water supply slowly.
Check for leaks.
Hopefully there is no leak.
Also calling a licenced plumber to do this procedure will make your life easy.

Good luck

 

[BobG]

Call kohler.
Order a new piece
When it arrives,
First turn the water supply off.
Open a faucet so you can take the water pressure out inside the pipe.
Go back to the faucet.
Take out the nut at the top of the handle.
Take the inner part out. Be easy...
Then take the new one and replace with the old part.
Make sure new piece placed in correctly.
Put the nut back and tight it.
Turn on the water supply slowly.
Check for leaks.
Hopefully there is no leak.
Also calling a licenced plumber to do this procedure will make your life easy.

Good luck

What is wrong with you?!

A plumber is what you call halfway through the repair when the water level in the basement is halfway up the basement stairs! And then you tell him its your daughter's house or girlfriend's house.

 

[ozgurakkas]

What is wrong with you?!

A plumber is what you call halfway through the repair when the water level in the basement is halfway up the basement stairs! And then you tell him its your daughter's house or girlfriend's house.

What if it's his grandmother's house...

Have fun with that...

 

[Art]

You might be able to tell the temperature. You'd have to figure out the expansion/contraction for the different parts, but the gap allowing the water to drip should change with temperature.

In practice, I guess you could just chart the temperature vs drip rate over a period of time, but since everything is going to be pretty close to room temperature, you probably won't see a huge variation.

I suggest turning off heat to the house. That will create a bigger variation in temperature.

I found the reference I was referring to and it's actually if you know 3 consecutive time intervals then you can predict the fourth, and if you could measure these time intervals exactly you could predict the entire future of the system but as exact measurement is impossible this can't be done. If the initial measurement was made to 10 decimal places then each predicted step drops a decimal place so after 10 drops you can no longer make a prediction. This was discovered in 1978 by some grad students at the University of California.

 

[Janus]

I was joking around a little - my primary concern was breaking a pipe or solder joint. If it starts leaking again, I'll buy a valve stem before doing anything else. Once I have that part, I should be able to see how to get the existing one out. I was at Lowes today and they didn't seem to have one for my faucet, but they were only like $10, so not a big deal even if I just end up using it as an instruction manual.

A piece of advice. If this is not a washerless faucet, replacing the stem/washer might not fix the leak. You might also have a bad seat(this is the surface the washer seals against). If it is worn or pitted, the washer will not seal properly, or even if the leak stops at first, the seat will quickly wear out the washer and you'll soon find yourself replacing it again. So, after removing the stem, shine a light inside and inspect the seat.

Here's what a typical seat looks like and where it is located. You might have to get a seat wrench to get it out. It just screws out, but it is down inside the faucet and not easy to get a purchase on.

 

[Danger]

Let's just simplify the situation. Blow the damned house up and build a new one without leaks.