How To Repair a Leaking Shower Valve | Ask This Old House

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In this video, when a shower valve in a perfectly preserved original bathroom started leaking, a homeowner reached out to Richard Trethewey for help fixing it.
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Older shower valves will leak over time. But, sometimes it’s safer to replace them with a pressure-balanced shower valve rather than fix them. When a homeowner knew that an upgrade would mean making holes in his perfectly preserved bathroom, he reached out to Richard Trethewey for help.
Where to find it?
Richard replaces an old 3-valve system in a 1930’s bathroom with a pressure-balanced
shower valve [homedepot.sjv....] and cover plate [homedepot.sjv....].
First, Richard loosens the calking around the tub spout with a utility knife [homedepot.sjv....]. Then he uses a pipe wrench [homedepot.sjv....] to remove the tub spout.
Richard uses an imp tubing cutter [homedepot.sjv....] to easily cut the connecting water pipes and removes the old shower valve.
He then lays masking tape [homedepot.sjv....] around the 3 valves openings and traces out a template of the cover plate.
Richard then uses a drill driver [homedepot.sjv....] and drills holes around the perimeter of the template. Next, he cuts through the tile and mud job with an oscillating saw [homedepot.sjv....], following the template.
Richard assembles the new pressure-balancing shower valve by cleaning out the
fittings and the exterior of the pipes with a wire brush [homedepot.sjv....]. Then, applying a layer of flux [homedepot.sjv....] to the interior fittings and exterior of the pipes. He installs the valve by heating up the pipe along the joints using a torch [homedepot.sjv....] and soldering [homedepot.sjv....] them securely to the water lines.
All supplies used for this project can be found at most home centers.
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Materials:
Masking tape [homedepot.sjv....]
Sand screen [homedepot.sjv....]
Scrap wood
Pressure-balancing shower diverter valve [homedepot.sjv....]
Oversized cover plate [homedepot.sjv....]
Copper piping and fittings [homedepot.sjv....]
Flux [homedepot.sjv....]
Solder [homedepot.sjv....]
Tools:
Utility knife [homedepot.sjv....]
Pipe wrench [homedepot.sjv....]
Water pump pliers [homedepot.sjv....]
Small tubing cutter [homedepot.sjv....]
Hammer [homedepot.sjv....]
Masonry chisel [homedepot.sjv....]
Drill driver [homedepot.sjv....]
Hammer drill [homedepot.sjv....]
Masonry bits [homedepot.sjv....]
Oscillating tool [homedepot.sjv....]
Wire brush [homedepot.sjv....]
Tape measure [homedepot.sjv....]
Soldering torch [homedepot.sjv....]
Screwdriver [homedepot.sjv....]
Plus, download our FREE app for full-episode streaming to your connected TV, phone or tablet: www.thisoldhou...
About Ask This Old House TV:
From the makers of This Old House, America’s first and most trusted home improvement show, Ask This Old House answers the steady stream of home improvement questions asked by viewers across the United States. Covering topics from landscaping to electrical to HVAC and plumbing to painting and more. Ask This Old House features the experts from This Old House, including general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, landscape contractor Jenn Nawada, master carpenter Norm Abram, and host Kevin O’Connor. ASK This Old House helps you protect and preserve your greatest investment-your home.
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How To Repair a Leaking Shower Valve | Ask This Old House
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Опубликовано:

8 окт 2024

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Комментарии : 136

@akpeagles 11 месяцев назад

I love how the show gets the home owners involved in working on the upgrades!

@AdultsSwim1 11 месяцев назад

Man, I wish I had someone like Richard in my life 😄 SO. MANY. HOME. PROJECTS.

@reaperbot5226 11 месяцев назад

swear they have done this type of video multiple times already on the TOH channel. but it's still nice to have a refresher course once in a while.

@monkeyoperator1360 11 месяцев назад

i think they have been slightly different each time

@janebutz5375 11 месяцев назад

I will watch anything with Rich Trethewy! He makes plumbing fun!

@JimDean002 27 дней назад

This is really the only channel that I have an alarm Bell set for. If they post it I want to see it.

@edwardthegreat1382 11 месяцев назад

One project I did 75 moen remodel kits. Learned a lot at that time!

@blad170 27 дней назад

Excellent explanation to that symmons temp balance shower spindle rich! You’ve been a great teacher during my time of plumber. God bless you sir

@jasonsgroovemachine 11 месяцев назад

It's amazing to me after the comment about keeping so much of the original detail in the house that the chosen repair here - which was not the only option - was to do exactly the opposite of that. This is a good fix for a lot of folks... but not for these folks.

@Vincerama 5 месяцев назад

Three handle showers are illegal now in many states, due to the scald danger. Repairing it would have required pulling the stems and either somehow rebuilding them (new washers, if you can find or make some to fit) or replacing them (if you can find replacement parts of that ancient valve system). However, due to the mud wall encasing the valves, it's very hard to remove the stems. My house, build in 1938 has a similar three handled shower, but worse ... it still has galvanzed pipes. The house in the video has had a re-pipe done to swap in copper, and that's probably why there is an access panel there ... from whoever did the repipe before, but they kept the original valves/handles and now they have gone bad. I think the homeowner wanted the original tiles, not necessarily the old handles. And of course "This Old House" wouldn't make the swap if the homeowner didn't agree to it. The new shower valve is safer and much much easier to repair in the future.

@GalacticTradingPost 11 месяцев назад

kindness and decency go a long way for a contractor. i bet he could charge higher prices and the homeowner would still leave him 5 star reviews.

@DavidVazquez-ol5fd 11 месяцев назад

Just I love all your videos. I solve few problems in my job just watching a video from you. Thanks a lot

@quercusrubra777 11 месяцев назад

I would vote for a solution that didn't require cutting such a large hole.

@williammentink 11 месяцев назад

I'm right there with you. It looked to me that the hole would need to be the size of the valve plus some clearance. It pained me to see the size of it.

@nick4leader 11 месяцев назад

Yeah,I have no idea why the hole needs to be so big

@hitdamatazaza5744 11 месяцев назад

@@nick4leaderit need to be that big cause it got to cover the holes on side the trim alone won’t cover those holes

@dancollins4372 11 месяцев назад

yeah, looks waaay too big, given they had access panel.

@Jaredshapiro1 11 месяцев назад

@@dancollins4372I think it’s just easier. They needed the repair plate to cover the old 3 valve holes, so why make a smaller access hole when the biggest one possible will also work. It also ensures he won’t need to cut more if the original was too conservative.

@danielmaldonado9781 11 месяцев назад

Dang I wish it was that easy to access behind old houses like those in Texas

@JimDean002 27 дней назад

It's not a bad gig. If you have an oscillating saw. I would suggest cutting a small enough hole that you can shine aight in there and see what might be behind there

@rebokfleetfoot 11 месяцев назад

same situation here but there be no rear access, it was a challenge

@a.l9313 Месяц назад

I have a similarly constructed bathroom. However, I don't have an access panel. Time to add cutting out an access panel to my list of projects, before calling the plumber out to replace the valves.

@SALESPRODUCTIONS 11 месяцев назад

( Was an apartment maintenance for 4 years in south Florida ) 20 units etc . . The showers had NO access panel AND the water in south Florida is so hard it EATS all the plumbing starting with all rubber gaskets - ( fossilizing them ) and at junctions and other random places it eats cooper piping from the inside ( galvanic corrosion ) and springs a leak inside the walls etc . . Also I had valves that were literally fossilized in place and no amount of stem pulling - heat - ( mapp gas ) - kinetics ( banging on them ) would remove the valves. So I had to break open the walls on the other side remove the entire assemblies - sweat new ones in - and then drywall and paint. It was bedroom walls. HARD WATER DESTROYS older piped plumbing.

@workingshlub8861 11 месяцев назад

20 years apartment tech here...i hear you on the hard water....ive worked in places where toilet flappers would last maybye 6 months...

@mahomv9824 11 месяцев назад

No gasket no caulking

@lukpac 11 месяцев назад

The cover plate has a built-in gasket.

@cardo1111 11 месяцев назад

As always very nice work Richard 👍🏽

@engrpiman 11 месяцев назад

I would have put a support board to support the valve

@keithgiosa 11 месяцев назад

I’m curious why 1) no shut off valves were added when the fixture was removed making repairs easier in the future and 2) why Richard used sweat fittings rather than crimp. Great video, regardless! We need this in an old shower.

@sterlingodeaghaidh5086 11 месяцев назад

Solder fittings are still the best option for longevity, as for the reason no shutoff valves are installed, its just due to labor, its extra labor and more materials to add for no other benefit other than isolating a single point that doesnt need frequent changing unlike a sink faucet or something else.

@workingshlub8861 11 месяцев назад

dedicated shutoffs are not required for shower faucets...

@GalacticTradingPost 11 месяцев назад

@@sterlingodeaghaidh5086 also rats seem to be attracted to the softer plastics in the pex tubing that you guys are talking about.

@mabdub 11 месяцев назад

I'm shocked! Could this situation not have been fixed using some other method so that the original beautiful fixtures and tiles could have been preserved??? Surely, there must have been a better solution. Actually, watching this video was heartbreaking.

@kevinadamski224 11 месяцев назад

You can also replace the three handle shower valve with another three handle valve but most place's by code you have to have a "pressure balancing valve" shower valve.

@kylefogle6022 11 месяцев назад

If you wanted to preserve the tile you could have installed a remote pressure balance valve upstream and repaired or replaced the existing valve. Kind of bazaar to see you chose not to considering the available access.

@valenzaplumbing 11 месяцев назад

Three handle valves are garbage and ancient in their lack of tech. He could have removed the washer/stem and replaced them with ceramic cartridges. But it’s a lot of money to spend on something that’s 80 years old.

@Sifu-intraining 11 месяцев назад

that looked really nice

@danmar007 11 месяцев назад

I've been watching TOH since the 90's. I can't think of another show I have watched for so long. ATOH came after, so ... :-) What I'd love to know is how to access a leak you can't get to.

@xoxo2008oxox 11 месяцев назад

I have same shower valves. I just replaced them with same valves. Sure, its hot on a flush, but that is the nostalgia. Still having this as an option to replace and update the plumbing... just curious why Richard didn't go proplex fitting sans soldering?

@dgrblue4162 11 месяцев назад

Licensed plumbers may not be able to just fix the leaky valve without giving the homeowner an anti-scald. They have rules to follow. Also, the plumber doesn't want to be sued.

@slicktmi 7 месяцев назад

Cost probrably or didn't have a pro press the amount of pro press fittings would cost as much as that valve not worth it imo.

@leemp337 8 месяцев назад

does the cap need to be sealed with silicone?

@skewdtchr85 11 месяцев назад

I have a clinker brick house too!! Love it!

@awesomepumashoes 5 месяцев назад

No waterproofing on the edge of the face plate?

@malikdigger4544 11 месяцев назад

Richard from (TOH) know ur professional plummer & etc. but 8::26 u going trust heat torch instead of caulking or fasteners around gaski.

@wollinger 11 месяцев назад

Oh man.. could use some of that at my place.

@kylefogle6022 11 месяцев назад

If you were interested in preserving the tile, as i thought the homeowner was, you could have installed a remote pressure balance valve upstream of the old valve. That would have allowed the existing valve to be repaired or replaced with something identical, and satisfy any plumbiing code. Given all the acces available, its difficult to understand why you didn't go that route. Those remodel plates are hideous.

@adamblackwell2718 11 месяцев назад

Another good solution and video. I love this show and have done since a kid, but whats with the music on American shows? They are fitting a shower it's not a drama!

@geoffsayers8736 11 месяцев назад

I was just thinking if the homeowner didn't shut the water of properly, richard would have a big surprise 🤣🤣

@Vincerama 5 месяцев назад

Nah, even with the water shut off, you have to open up a faucet (most likely the one he's standing at ... the tub faucet!) to let the water out. They just didn't show it.

@christopherlipfert1790 11 месяцев назад

Thanks

@keithhastings4092 11 месяцев назад

Did the new hole really need to be that big?

@2006rm250 11 месяцев назад

Wth was it necessary to punch a hole that big????

@JacobConkin 11 месяцев назад

Yes. The biggest the better

@sterlingodeaghaidh5086 11 месяцев назад

Manufacturer recommendations, best guess is this is meant to go in a shower that doesnt have an access, so you have to cut a hole big enough to remove the valve anyway, this just allows you to cut just enough to do the job without having to redo tile.

@Vincerama 5 месяцев назад

@@sterlingodeaghaidh5086 exaclty. The access panel was lucky. The manufacturer of the escutcheon just provided a template for the giant hole so that you could access the pipes more easily from the front. From the front, the we can see from the front that access to the pipes is much easier. However, if he didn't have that access plate, removing the old plumbing would have been a lot harder

@JimDean002 27 дней назад

7:09. After they marked out the template they could have literally held the valve back up from the chad and marked around the valve spout. That's the only thing that had to come through the wall. I would have much preferred that. You would have still had 2/3 of your tile there

@dgrblue4162 11 месяцев назад

Rember professional plumbers have to follow the codes and laws of the state and area they operate in. Which may require that pressure balance valve be installed. Homeowners, can replace like for like, but they accept the, and have to do the work themselves

@workingshlub8861 11 месяцев назад

you have to put those symmons valves spindles in a certain way or they will bind up....

@2-old-Forthischet 11 месяцев назад

That's the reason I hire a pro when needed. I know my limits.

@alpachino7663 6 месяцев назад

*It's never about the fireplace,* lol

@camicri4263 11 месяцев назад

Always a solution! Blessings 💕🤗

@grayfox9911 11 месяцев назад

Thanks for the video.

@JackTheAwesomeKnot 11 месяцев назад

Title: How To Repair a Leaking Shower Valve. Richard: Rips it all out and replaces it.........

@jaxsoncarter5058 5 месяцев назад

I don’t need a pressure shower i have pumped water and i can run every sink and flush the toilet and pressure stays the same

@vc8424 5 месяцев назад

I must of missed something, why was such a big hole necessary?

@robertwioch3691 11 месяцев назад

Hello Very Good Work. Gave you thump up and A 100% feed back for you... From Robert 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

@chrisf9607 11 месяцев назад

Grinder works

@jasonpartridge7533 11 месяцев назад

This isn't repairing a leaking valve, this is replacing a valve. And, as an added convenience, has a huge access panel already in place. How does one go about actually repairing a valve, without changing the tile, where an access panel does not previously exist?

@herbieherbie-kj1es 3 месяца назад

I'm thinking of cutting an access panel in the bedroom closet for the same job.

@Dino_Buk 11 месяцев назад

Why plumbers never caulk around these plates??

@traktion9 11 месяцев назад

The new ones come with their own water proof gasket for a cleaner look.

@moemanncann895 11 месяцев назад

@@traktion9 That view through the access panel showed that the foam gasket didn't seal properly against the tile, hole was made too big. I would put a nice thin bead of bathroom silicone around the plate in front to make sure

@Eric_thedisciple 11 месяцев назад

Richard you know good and well that hole didnt have to be that big

@MrJdebest 11 месяцев назад

Recently, our 18 story hirise was completely re plumbed. All the old pipes were replaced with Pex pipes, no soldering. Just an expander tool and slip fitting, a minute later, the pex contracts onto the fitting, and it's done. The crew of dry wallers and painters followed - most excellent results. 👍 Supposed to last 30 - 50 years. *** I mentioned this because it is very easy to work with, no soldering skills required.

@williammentink 11 месяцев назад

That house is nearing a hundred years old, one would think that the plumbing is that old as well.

@JimDean002 11 месяцев назад

Expansion pex fittings are starting to show some issues with the expansions splitting after several years. Apparently they don't have quite enough elasticity to maintain that much of an expanded profile without eventually giving away. It's not common but it's definitely a thing that's happening. Sadly the only thing that still holds true as the best one going is plain old copper

@MrJdebest 11 месяцев назад

@@JimDean002 Yah, the only thing forever is the Earth 🌎 and sky. !

@terryhunt691 11 месяцев назад

Wrong title. This is a great video if you want to switch fixtures, not repair existing fixtures.

@georgepmr 11 месяцев назад

Armchair criticizing...I would stabilize that handle with a piece of wood considering how many times your going to use it, then that beautiful soldiering will last forever! :)

@knowledgeispower6192 11 месяцев назад

Anyone else notice the covered electrical box near the floor. Im surprised they didn't address that

@oldskoolwayy 11 месяцев назад

Amazing how they took out character items for boring modern attachments..you can tell he wanted to keep those tub knobs.

@will5150 11 месяцев назад

steven lavimoniere would approve.

@HAMRADIOJOE4178 11 месяцев назад

i can watch tommy all day

@timc1341 11 месяцев назад

Richard, buddy, you've never heard of autocuts?

@dannyburl5324 11 месяцев назад

Hey guys my outside facet is leaking can you help me?/

@peoplethesedaysberetarded 11 месяцев назад

I’d be careful in asking this. Given what we just saw, they’d blow out your exterior wall completely to do that work.

@stevendavanna 11 месяцев назад

❤️

@JamesAutoDude 11 месяцев назад

So basically the answer is a bigger plate/hole, and a big enough rear access 😂 tbh with how much rear access they had, the huge hole was unnecessary

@lawrencematos7493 11 месяцев назад

Now he needs to put some caulk around the plate and fixtures ..

@lukpac 11 месяцев назад

No, it has a built-in gasket.

@ekujj13 11 месяцев назад

Looks like “original” tile from the 70s

@4212daniel 11 месяцев назад

no need for that whole to be that big unless there wasnt a access door

@1971mav 11 месяцев назад

The real reason to keep the original tile and other things is because it's cheaper.

@scotttovey 11 месяцев назад

"How To Repair a Leaking Shower Valve" Repair? That was more like how to replace a leaking shower valve. I really don't care for the valve design in this particular valve.

@natersalad889 11 месяцев назад

Wow horrible solution.....

@frdradio 11 месяцев назад

Dude has 1972 shower valves but pro-press sutoffs on new copper in the basement. Not staged at all.

@hitdamatazaza5744 11 месяцев назад

Lol not to mention empty closet

@charlesdatri2318 11 месяцев назад

Beautiful copper work by Richard but what an ugly flimsy front end with a completely unnecessary and unsupported giant hole (there are good quality three stem controls) . Wait till the water starts to work its' way behind the plate.