Bathtub will not stop dripping.

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1. I do not know what I am talking about.

1. I am a so-so DIY'er. (Do-it-yourself'er)

My bathtub has been leaking for the longest time. My first attempt at fixing it was to:

1. Turn off the water.
2. Remove the faucet handle.
3. Replace the washer (large rubber donut thingie) between the pipe and the threaded thingie that the faucet handle attaches to.
4. Put thread tape around the threaded thingie to prevent leakage in the direction of the threads and put everything back together.

This worked fine for months, but now the drip is back. I think it is partly because of how hard the knob is twisted to the off position, but what do I know.

Can anyone recommend some surefire techniques at fixing the problem? Money is currently tight, so a plumber is out of the question (at least for the prices around here).

[Mark M.]

The black rubber donut (washer) you replaced closes off against a raised brass ring (seat). It is common for the seat to need replacing as well as the washer. First the washer goes bad and then the constant leaking of water past the brass seat eventually wears a groove in it. To check the seat, remove the faucet stem like you did before and then shine a flash light into the hole. Sometimes you can even feel the seat surface with your fingernail. It must be perfectly smooth all the way around. With the proper tool (faucet seat wrench) the seat should unscrew. If you can get it out, run it down to the hardware store where they may be able to match up a new one. Don't forget to smear a bit of pipe dope on the new seat threads before installing. Good luck.

Mark M.

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Response from "Mark M." :

Awesome! Thank you so much. I am going to give this a try within the next day or so.

At first I was freaking out wondering where I was going to get a faucet seat wrench and dreading how much it would cost. Then I see they are barely $5. Ha.

Anyway, is there any real differences:

...? I mean, they all (but one) say they remove square and hex faucet seats so...

Thanks again for your assistance and patience.

[Mark M.]

Both of my seat wrenches are the tapered style. I put it in the seat, give a couple taps with the hammer and then unscrew while keeping pressure towards the seat. If the seat has a hex shaped hole, you can simply unscrew it with the right sized allen wrench.

Mark M.

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Response from "Mark M." :

Thank you kindly, Mark. As luck would have it, I did not make it to the hardware store in time Friday and of course they do not open again until Tuesday so drip drip drip until then.

I cannot wait to give this a go though. It would be so nice to not have to go bed listening to the one-drip-per-second melody that plays through the night.

Who the heck decided to put the headboard against the other side of the wall to the bathroom?

*glares at the missus*

[Jeff Wisnia]

So just tie a piece of string onto the spout and position it so the water runs down it and onto the bottom of the tub instead of dripping......

If it happens that the seat is NOT the removable kind, you can buy a seat refacer tool which is essentially just a hand twisted rotary file which will smooth off the existing seat.

Jeff

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Response from Jeff Wisnia :

Hey, that is a great idea! Thanks.

Another great tip, thanks for that too! I decided to pick up a faucet reseater too. I am glad I did now, because I could not find a tapered seat wrench, only a stepped one and for the life of me I could not remove the seat.

I even tried a 5/16ths Allen wrench to no avail. It just seemed to slip all the way in until it hit the "L." The seat wrench was no better, it went all the way up to the hilt (the last step before the smoothness of the rest of the wrench) and at no point did I feel anything "grab."

Maybe I needed a much bigger seat wrench? The first step was about a

5/16ths Allen, but it had 2 more steps to it. I would tell you the size but it does not say on the package, just that it was made by Superior Tool and it is model 03795.

in case anyone cares. : )

Finally I just used the reseater to shave away a little of the barbs and gold colored flakes that were caked on it. Then I put a new washer back in and it appeared to solve the problem. I only watched it for a minute or so, but I think that did it.

So, thanks for the help you two. I appreciate it greatly. I would still like to know what the deal is on the seat and the wrench though. I verified that it is the removable kind, I just could not remove it.