Bathtub: can't turn water off on Moen Faucet.

our moen faucet in our bathtub is one of the pull kind where you pull it out and then turn it clockwise or counter clockwise to adjust water temp.

Out water heater went out. We had to turn off the water at the main valve. When we replaced it and took a shower upstairs in the bathroom, we were unable to push the knob back in. Water kept coming out of the bathtub faucet. We had to go outside and turn the main valve off and then push the knob back in. I figured the cartridge was bad and replaced it. Same thing happened immediately when I replaced and turned the water back on. Similarly, the same thing happend 8 months ago when I replaced the cartridge orginally. I seems that both cartridges are fine and something is preventing us from turning the water off.

I had to turn off the water 5 times before it finally worked. What I did was after turning the main back on,I pulled the knob open slightly and pushed it back in. I did this in small increments and finally it worked. We are now in the process of renting the home and I am most certain this will happen again. It feels like there is air pressure back there preventing us from pushing the knob back in. Does this sound right? If so, what can I do to fix this problem for I know the tenants will have no clue what to do when this happens and will wast a lot of water. Thank you.

If you have steel pipes, you will have corrosion too.

Whenever you turn off the main, and then turn the water back on, small bits will break off from inside the pipe.

Next time, turn the water on very slowly. The slower the better.