Faucet Repair

Whether in the kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, or bathroom, the most common reason a plumber is called to make a faucet repair is that the faucet has started to drip from the spout.

Most faucets have internal parts that can be replaced, so St Paul Pipeworks plumbers often ask customers to send a picture of the faucet. The internal parts in a faucet are specific to each brand of faucet. Sometimes they are also specific to each particular model within the brand. Once the St Paul Pipeworks plumbers identify the faucet, the next step is to verify if the repair parts are available locally or need to be ordered from the manufacturer.

PRO TIP:
It is good to take a picture of the faucet to send to your plumber via e-mail or text when scheduling a repair. The photo helps the plumber identify the faucet brand and model, which from past experience with the brand may suggest potential reasons for the dripping.

Bath faucets and shower faucets are typically designed to be repaired from the front. Many customers assume that a plumber must access the faucet behind the bathtub or shower wall, which is not the case. St Paul Pipeworks plumbers can usually access the problem through the finished wall where the handle and the faucet spout are located.

Taking a faucet apart may seem easy, but it can be difficult, especially for a homeowner. St Paul Pipeworks plumbers are experienced and know where to locate the set screws on various models to begin taking it apart. Further, some manufacturers, such as Moen, require a specialized tool to get cartridges out. If you do not have that tool, it is much more difficult.

Plumbers know where to look for and are familiar with exploded view parts diagrams if there are smaller intricate parts to replace. Once the faucet is identified, St Paul Pipeworks plumbers carry lots and lots of faucet repair parts on the trucks, but there are many faucets on the market, making it impossible for them to have every part.

Faucets can leak from other places. The first thing to look for is water leaking out of the spout, but sometimes if the faucet spout swivels, it can leak from the swivel point. A faulty O-ring usually causes that. A faucet can also leak from under the handles right along the stem. This can be repaired with packing or O-rings, but some makes and models require specialized parts for that type of leak.

Another thing that can occur is that faucets become loose from the deck and need to be tightened, so it is not actually a faucet repair but a repair to the mounting of the faucet. Once in a while, people see water in the cabinet below the sink. Often that is not the faucet itself that’s leaking. It is most likely that the faucet wasn’t correctly installed or properly caulked in. The whole deck should be water-tight.

Also, a faucet can leak from up inside the body of the faucet. When that happens, a faucet replacement is necessary. St Paul Pipeworks plumbers carry several models of faucets with them on each truck. Customers can choose a new one if their faucet needs to be replaced. If the customer doesn’t see something they like on the truck, the plumbers have photos to show them, or they can choose to find a model they do like and let the plumber know to order and bring it with them when they come back to install the new faucet. This is for your convenience and allows us to complete the job on the same day during the same repair call whenever possible.