Andy from Home to Garden walks you through what you will need and how to service a spindle tap. If you have any requests or ideas for future videos, please let us know in the comments below.
You are a life-saver, mate. The bloke from Bunnings said he could not show me how to do it since it is against company policy (which I completely understand, given how many dumb people are out there, ready to blame that bloke should they fail to fix the spindle tap themselves), but he gave me the exact parts needed for the entire process. I followed your every move and boom, I fixed the damn leaky shower. Thanks a bunch!
as a lady trying to be more independent, I cannot thank you enough for this, the fee from plumber after excessive call out fee was $995, which I refused to pay. learnt something new today and can now pay it forward to help another and save them some money in the future.
Oh wow that is lovely to hear. This is totally in alignment with my mind set that got me doing these videos in the first place. Thank you for letting me know. ❤️
i guess im asking randomly but does anybody know of a way to log back into an Instagram account? I stupidly forgot the login password. I would love any tips you can offer me
@Demetrius Abel I really appreciate your reply. I found the site thru google and I'm trying it out now. Takes a while so I will reply here later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
Thanks Andy, I finally understood where I should placed the O ring. I have replaced two spindles without the silicon grease. I will do some investigation as to whether they will slow down the rusting
Most plumbing supplies like Reece and trade link will have tap grease. Make sure you remove the old grease and gunk first so the spindle moves smoothly. If there is rust, it may be worth while replacing the spindles as they are usually either chrome plates or brass so should not rust. It maybe they are past their servicing life. Happy to talk on the phone if it helps. 0439951323
The silicon grease is for lubricating the threads and can be used on the rings to help preserve them, if your brass fittings are rusting something's gone terribly wrong.
I always put a little Vaseline on the rubber "O" rings too to make for smoother operation and always flush the open taps before trying the new washers - messy but effective.
That is a great tip. This is a good idea when installing a tap under a bath and a shower. It stops the rubber drying up and reduces the risk of the tap leaking.
@@fothersaj Yes Andrew what I meant was to flush out any filings from reseating the tap before closing the tap itself - the control of course is from the meter being opened and again it does make for a mess at the newly washered tap end but saves the filing s and grit etc from being embedded in the washer material.
i’ve somehow managed to thread the little two prong gap screw that goes behind the actual tap handle in on an angle.. i’ve now bent my little teeth tool and can’t get it undone again… handle doesn’t turn the tap. Any ideas other that angle grinding the spindle ?
If the cover plate is on that hard to get off a monkey wrench is your best bet. The trouble is it will damage the cover plate so you may need to replace the tap set.
Hey great video. Any tips for getting that plastic ring off after a few years of use. Ive got a whole house full of them and theyre all siezed. That crappy sheetmetal tool didnt event come close to loosening them. What a terrible design theese bloody taps are!
I have those exact taps in my laundry but even with that tool I cannot fit it into the grooves to unscrew the tap head. I've done it on my shower no problem, but they are newer taps, laundry ones are older. All I want to do is change the washer. Any tips?
I would turn the water off unscrew the taps fully. Unscrew the cover plate with the handles still on. Hopefully there is room to get multi grips or spanner on and undo the spindle with everything attached.
Gday mate. I have to use that little tool to remove the locking nut. Mine won’t budge. Might be a stupid question but is it reverse thread? To undo it is it clockwise or anticlockwise?
It's actually at Bunnings, kinetic spout and handle repair kit 10$, I got one today , and my father got one a few months ago, I won't lie it's hard to find though
hi I have this issue with what looks like the same taps, and I cannot remove the cover to get to put the tube spanner over the nut, any tips on removing the stuck cover?
Hello. Unfortunately once they get sick the only way to remove the cover is the use mechanical means. I would be using a pair of multi grips. First I would try using them with some rubber under the teeth around the largest part of the cover plate where it meets the wall. If they continue to slip then you may need to apply the teeth straight into the chrome. It will likely mark the chrome. As long as you keep it really tight weekend you apply the force to turn the cover plate out should not slip, but might leave some teeth marks. Worst case, if the cover is to badly scratched, you will have the taps out and can replace the to assembly for new ones. The situation you are in is fairly common, you are not alone. It is advisable to service taps once every 2-3 years for this reason.
I have the same fitting on my shower and on my hand basins sink, i changed the o rings and washers on the shower but on the sink i am unable to losen the ant tamper nut, it is allmost like it is in the handle to far and the tool is not able to lock on. Any suggestions would be great. Thanks
Does the tap handle have a small screw for an allen key? Some handles will unscrew from the spindle once the grub screw is unscrewed. If it is not like that. Sometimes just getting one of the teeth of the tool into the nut can work as you can get it in further. Failing that a small flat head screw driver can sometimes work to get it started.
@@bucketmanism unfortunately the plastic nuts will do this. If the taps have not been services for a couple of years the soap builds up in the thread. At this point you have to consider replacing the top assembly. As you won't get the handle off. You can unscrew the cover plate and hopefully have room to get a set of multi grips on to the spindle to in undo the spindle from the breach. This way you can get a new top assembly to screw back in. Be careful not to fall into the trap of replacing the washer when you get it all out in one piece as you may not be able to screw the whole assembly back right to the body washer, if the washer is larger than the old one. To do it properly you really need to clean the spindle to ensure the spindle gets fully extended and then you will be able to tighten it all back in place to get a good seal on the body washer.
@@fothersaj Thanks Andy. Yep, the washer was buggered, no way that spindle was coming off. I had to undo the P trap, unscrew the mounting brackets, pull the whole sink out, undo the tap covers as much as possible then loosen the mounting screws under the sink so the tap assembly poked up enough to get a spanner underneath. Then I removed the whole top tap assembly in order to change the washers. Took about 3 hours all up to replace the two washers and reassemble, but all done and fixed like a treat. Even tried melting the washers with a bbq lighter, but nope, had to do it the long way around.
If you are changing your washer regularly as you keep needing to turn the tap off tightly to stop it drpping them it is likely you have a crack in the seat of the breach. You can check this when you remove the washer, shine a torch into the space where the washer sits. There is a round flat surface. This is where you might see a small indentation. You can get around this temporarily with a dome shaped washer as it will seal inside the seat not flat on the seat. Long term you may need to open the wall and replace the breach. This can be done from the outside of the bathroom by a professional.
@@fothersaj thanks mate. I’m in a rental so I’m just keeping maintenance up. Been issue since been here either previous tenants have caused this or was damaged from install. Place is only 7 years old. Cheers for help
Yes unfortunately if taps are not serviced regularly the nut can end up seized. It's is like most things in life, preventative maintenance helps. Once you get to the point where you can't get the handles off then a new set of taps is required. Hopefully you can undo the tap(spindle) far enough to reveal the spindle body to be able get a set of multi grips onto the spindle and undo the spindle with tap handle and cover in one piece. You can then install a new set of top assembly in to the breach. Let me know if you need me to explain how.
@@fothersaj Thank you for your reply, you have made a good video. I would not have been able to do as you suggest, what had happened is the plumber had installed one of the components the wrong way around and as a result the tap had worn the flat (as it was only on it by a small amount) and the handle just came off. I discovered the solution some time after was the product called Inox; it worked really well on seized brass; and was able to remove the lock nut and reinstall it the correct way around and it worked fine until last night when the spindle thread failed. It was 16 years old, it is the second tap spindle thread that has failed in the house. In hindsight, I guess a tap that has seen more than 12 years of hard service; just replace it, as they will always fail at the worst time. Cheers.
Probably don’t need a plumber to clean the spindle if you go to Bunnings you can get a wall tap spindle assembly for 20 bucks and you just replace the whole lot
That's one way. Just make sure you get the right length, correct colour and the same shape to fit the handle you have. I'm a bit old fashioned, I like to fix things before I buy and replace with new.
