Pete C
Member
A few years back, I roughed in the plumbing for a walk in shower. I am finally getting around to finishing this much overdue job.
I finished the last bit of plumbing from the valve up to the shower head and turned it on.
It trickled water.
Hmmmm.
So I pulled the cartridge out (glacier bay HD model 769-192) behind the cartridge, or maybe it is considered part of the cartridge, is a white plastic thing that the water passes through. I took it apart. Inside it is a steel cylinder inside a cylinder. The inner one was stuck, likely from sitting there for years with hard water in it. I suspect the purpose of this device is to get the water to mix a bit so you don't get straight hot water. Anyhow, I cleaned it all up, reassembled it. Now it rattles a bit when I shake it, telling me that it is moving freely.
Put it all back together and turn it on. I now have decent enough flow, but when I go to full hot, it is luke warm. I did adjust the set screw on the outside for max hot. It appears to me that the scald guard gizmo is working a bit too well.
Am I missing something here?
I bought this thing off the clearance rack for next to nothing, so it's not like I'm into it for a lot of $$$, so, I am tempted to just yank it out and spend a few bucks on a quality brand valve from the local supply guys or maybe the web.
Any help or recommendations on a good quality replacement would be appreciated. I don't need fancy, just functional and long lasting. The wall will be tile over kerdi, so I really don't want to have to open it back up in 5 years.
I finished the last bit of plumbing from the valve up to the shower head and turned it on.
It trickled water.
Hmmmm.
So I pulled the cartridge out (glacier bay HD model 769-192) behind the cartridge, or maybe it is considered part of the cartridge, is a white plastic thing that the water passes through. I took it apart. Inside it is a steel cylinder inside a cylinder. The inner one was stuck, likely from sitting there for years with hard water in it. I suspect the purpose of this device is to get the water to mix a bit so you don't get straight hot water. Anyhow, I cleaned it all up, reassembled it. Now it rattles a bit when I shake it, telling me that it is moving freely.
Put it all back together and turn it on. I now have decent enough flow, but when I go to full hot, it is luke warm. I did adjust the set screw on the outside for max hot. It appears to me that the scald guard gizmo is working a bit too well.
Am I missing something here?
I bought this thing off the clearance rack for next to nothing, so it's not like I'm into it for a lot of $$$, so, I am tempted to just yank it out and spend a few bucks on a quality brand valve from the local supply guys or maybe the web.
Any help or recommendations on a good quality replacement would be appreciated. I don't need fancy, just functional and long lasting. The wall will be tile over kerdi, so I really don't want to have to open it back up in 5 years.