How To Repair A Symmons S-96-1 Tub Valve Or S-96-2 Tub And Shower Valve For Homeowners
How To Repair A Symmons S-96-1 Tub Valve, Or S-96-2 Tub And Shower Valve For Homeowners, is an article that will inform the homeowner of various repairs that can be made on either of these valves.
Most people will have to call the plumber when their tub and shower, or shower valve begins to leak, or just stops shutting off. This is a very common problem and most homeowners who have Symmons valves will need to perform some sort of repair along the life of the valve.
Convenience In Design
This type of valve is intended to go inside of the wall and service one fixture. In the case of a shower only valve, you would have an S-96-1. In the case of a tub and shower, you would have an s-96-2, the difference being the obvious tub spout and the lever on the face will say tub and shower, or volume respectively.
These valves are both designed to be completely serviceable from the front of the valve. This allows convenient repairs without opening the wall. In most cases the valve can be completely rebuilt through the faceplate.
Replacement And Repair Parts You May Need
Replacement parts for Symmons valves are available from Amazon.com, as well as most plumbing supply houses and home improvement outlets. getting what you need will require you know the type and model of the valve you are repairing.
Parts you may need to change will include a new stem and new seats. There is also a washer kit you can purchase that will have one of each washer in the valve. When disassembling the valve it is recommended that you just go ahead and replace all the gaskets at once seeing how you already have the valve apart.
Tools Required To Repair A Symmons Valve
Some tools you may need to perform this repair are a Phillips screwdriver to remove handle and faceplate. A pair of channel locks and Symmons seat removal tools to replace the valve seats. You will also need some pipe thread compound to seal any threaded fittings as they go back together.
Removing The Trim Plates
To remove the trim plate for access to the valve stem, we must first remove the handle. This involves removing the cap that covers the screw in the center of the handle. Pop it out with the edge of a screwdriver or pen knife. Then remove the Phillips screw from the center hole in the handle.
At this point you should be able to pull the handle straight off. If the handle won't move then you probably have an old symmons stem and a metal handle that has fused itself to the valve stem. The new handles are made of plastic and will not fuse to the stem like their predecessors.
In the case of a seized on handle, it will be required to grab the handle with a very large pair of channel lock pliers or vice grips and actually bend the stem up and down with the handle until it breaks off. The stem will break where it comes out of the valve and this is OK because we are changing the entire stem any way. Now however you will need a new handle as well.
After the handle is removed there are two bolts that hold the main faceplate on these can be removed with a Phillips screwdriver. After taking out the two bolts the faceplate can be removed from the valve. This will expose the valve so we can get at the parts we need to change.
Removing And Replacing The Stem And Seats
On A Symmons Shower Valve
This is the point where we must find the shutoff point in the water supply to the valve. After the water is turned off and the valve is exposed, now the bonnet or retainer nut can be removed. This is accomplished by using the channel lock pliers and turning the brass retainer nut counterclockwise until it is removed. Once the nut is off the stem should be able to be turned completely out of the valve.
Seats should also be replaced at this time and there are two of them within the cavity that the stem was removed from. Using a Symmons wrench and inserting the square end of the tool into the valve all the way so that it fits into the seat, unscrew the seat with your channel lock pliers, or an open end wrench that fits the seat tool may be used. This is also a counterclockwise removal. First the large seat can be removed and then the small seat.
The replacement seats can now be installed in the reverse order. After the seats have been installed and they are tightened then we can install a new Symmons stem of the appropriate model number for the valve we are working on. Once the new stem is in then the retainer nut can be reinstalled and you should use a little pipe thread compound on the threads of this nut , not only to seal it but to act as an anti seize compound for future access.
At this point your valve is back together enough to turn the water back on and test for leaks. If all is well then we can replace the trim in the order of removal and the handle can be reinstalled or the replacement handle, if you needed one can now be installed.
Average Savings For The Homeowner
The average homeowner likes to do repairs on their own home, if it's not too complicated. This job can be accomplished without the help of a serviceman and quite a sum of money can be saved. Parts are all available to anyone who wants to go and buy them so why not give it a shot.
Most plumbers will charge anywhere from 70 to 150 dollars per hour to come to your house for this job and the job without a rush on it can be made to take 4 to 6 hours. I'm not saying it takes that long, it can be done in less then an hour. It isn't the habit of hourly workers to accomplish as much as possible in every hour and complications like seized handles and other bolt problems can occur.
Doing this job yourself can obviously save you a lot of money. How To Repair A Symmons S-96-1 Tub Valve Or S-96-2 Tub And Shower Valve For Homeowners, has hopefully given you enough insight to get the job done.
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