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Day 9: Delta, Delta, Delta, can I drip you, drip you, drip you?

It's been a few days. We had a family member visit for the weekend, and then we had a couple snow storms, and then most of us got sick. No, not COVID-19, just a stomach bug. But it was a setback.

1. Fix the leaky bathtub faucet.

When we moved into this house the bathtub faucet in the second bathroom had a very small drip. It was so small it was almost imperceptible. However, over time that drip grew and grew until a few weeks ago it became a small stream. I really didn't want to have to call a plumber, but after doing some research, I learned that the problem is a simple, cheap, DIY fix. The faucet is an older Delta faucet, which contains a cartridge that controls the flow of water when turned on. I snagged a replacement cartridge off Amazon for about $25, turned off the water in the house, and got to work. Disassembling the faucet was remarkably simple, and because it's not that old there wasn't any corrosion to deal with. Using a hex tool, strap wrench, and flat screwdriver I had the faucet apart and the old cartridge out in a few minutes.

Getting the new cartridge in was a bit of a challenge. It's a tight fit. Eventually I worked it back into the socket and put the faucet back together. A quick jog to the basement and back to pressure test the faucet, and voila! Still leaky. Albeit, the leak wasn't nearly as bad, but it was still leaky. So, back to square one. Basement and back. Took everything apart. Removed the cartridge. I looked into the pipes and did notice a bit of mineral build-up, so I got some vinegar and a toothbrush and cleaned out the pipe. Cartridge back in. Faucet back together. A quick jaunt to the basement and back, and...still leaks.

Ok, at least I got my exercise running back and forth from the basement. I took everything back apart and started from scratch. I took the O-rings off the cartridge and made sure they were clean. I then slathered them with a generous amount of silicone lubricant. I put everything back together, went for my jog, and finally the faucet stopped dripping!


 

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