Plumbing help please


 
Len Dennis

Len Dennis

TVWBB Diamond Member
It's a Kohler rite-valve shower assembly (K 397 4). Two years old.


Shower worked fine one day, zero water next (spigot or shower) then all ok next day and then next day nothing (going on 2 days).


The only tips I've found online relate to dripping faucets. Nothing addresses this instant failure.


I'm leaning towards sediment of some sort but I thought that would be a more gradual pressure failing rather than instant fail.


Before I pull out the valve and balancer (I've seen some vids online that it's easy to break the valve as it sometimes is fused (hard water) to the balancer) , I want to get some opinions.


Can the valve and balancer be cleaned or should I just replace (about $100 for both).


These are the two items (valve on left, pressure balancer on right):
ZqTLDjH.jpg
 
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I know it's a holiday but have you tried contacting Kohler? I'm not a plumber but I had a few where I needed to replace the cartridge.
Had something to do with the ant-scald settings.

Tim
 
That's on my "to do" list tomorrow but I thought I'd get some "good ol' boys" help first ;) I have to get the parts on amaz as they're $152 at local HD (online only to boot) vs $95 at amaz. Want to confirm my thoughts before ordering in any case.

I should add (because of your scald comment): I can get a little tiny dribble out of the spigot BUT it's always hot (no matter where the handle is).

timothy said:
Had something to do with the ant-scald settings.

Tim
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When you had the fault Tim, was it instant failure or gradual?

Thanks for replying Tim :D
 
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It was gradual at first than nothing. Mine was still under warranty with Kohler, I called and they said it was prolly the cartridge ( the anti-scald was problematic at that time ) and they sent out two.
That was 10 yrs ago and so far no problems.

Oops: Mine was a Moen not Kohler.
Tim
 
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nah, all other outlets work as expected, including sink and toilet in that room. The shower pipes are in an inside wall as well. First thing I thought of though ;)
 
timothy said:
It was gradual at first than nothing. Mine was still under warranty with Kohler, I called and they said it was prolly the cartridge ( the anti-scald was problematic at that time ) and they sent out two.
That was 10 yrs ago and so far no problems.

Oops: Mine was a Moen not Kohler.
Tim
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Kohler warranty is only lifetime for drips/leaks not stoppages like this. I'll know more (from Kohler) when I call tomorrow and describe the issue.
 
Plumbing is my forte. That's why I call the dude who's a plumber 2 houses down the street. Works every time.
 
Robert-R said:
Plumbing is my forte. That's why I call the dude who's a plumber 2 houses down the street. Works every time.
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Yea, there are times when you need a pro. But trying to get a plumber to make a house call this time of the year in Len's neck of the woods is almost impossible.
They are so backed up with service calls on frozen water lines right now.
I have a few buds that have been on 24hr call for the last week, and all of next week.

Tim
 
UPDATE: it's now working again.:confused:

So that's: working, not working next day, working the day after, not working the next day for two days, working this a.m.

Kohler is open tomorrow after NYD, so I'll be phoning. I'll advise.

Thanks for the input folks :D
 
Yes, $92CDN total on amaz ca. At this point they're still ok (hot and cold) :) I don't need the full unit, just the "guts" (valve and mixer).

Most stuff we have here are twice your price :(
 
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Len Dennis said:
Most stuff we have here are twice your price :(
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I know. I honeymooned in Montreal and Quebec City with my practice (first) wife. I've vacationed in Canada a couple of times since then. I've been from west of Banff to east of St. Anne's Chutes. Oddly, only missing Manitoba.

I'd still check out FAUCET.COM for the down parts you need just to compare prices. We went to a Delta showroom and they wanted $320 for a shower/tub configuration and I got the same thing at FAUCET.COM for $152.
 
So what did Kohler say Len? I went online and the pressure balance seems like the culprit.

Tim
 
Welll Tim, I didn't phone as the taps were working the next day. And still are. I believe about 99% at this point that although the pipes are on an inside wall, they froze (just enough to shut off the flow, not enough to burst the pipes). Crappy insulation in the walls and there not being any in between the floor of the bathroom/tub and the celing of the kitchen (directly below the upstairs bathroom) allowed the cold air to flow "sideways" to where the pipes are .

Although temps are still cold (-19 -20 C), I've run the hot/cold 3-4 times during the day and 1-2 times at night (once at bedtime and once when nature calls). It was slow to start up this a.m (7) but did get going.

I honestly believe it was the cold and not a fault of the faucet.

Thanks for asking :)
 
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Whoa!. I'm glad you didn't burst any pipes.
Improper insulation drives me nut's.... ( what these builders get away with :confused: )

Tim
 
I agree BUT this was built in the mid 70's so I think that was probably standard at the time. Aluminum wiring as well--makes an interesting install when mods are added.

We had a fuse box as well up to about 5 yr ago when we upgraded to breakers. We didn't buy new but that's what it had in '90 when we moved in. Nothing wrong with fuses. And alum wiring is not an issue either. It does get (is?) brittle but there are methods to attach copper to aluminum that work quite nicely.
 
Well, I'm glad it's working now. When I redid our two bathrooms I replaced the insulation that was in there (it was 30+ years old) and behind the shower and tub units for sound barriers.

I don't what your set up is, but one of those plug in wrap around pipe heaters sounds like it would be something to think about. If you add one you can run an extension cord to a plug you have access to so it can be unplug when not needed (warm months).
 
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Bill Elwell said:
I don't what your set up is, but one of those plug in wrap around pipe heaters sounds like it would be something to think about. If you add one you can run an extension cord to a plug you have access to so it can be unplug when not needed (warm months).
Click to expand...

Not accessible as that room is two stories up. I did use those warmers when we were living in Alberta. Had a bathroom where the tub ran parallel to an outside north facing wall. If we had a shower at night, the leftover water in the bottom of the tub was frozen by morning ! Surprisingly, the pipes never froze in that room.
 
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