[ferrugia]

This question pertains to my bathtub faucet & shower head. Please see attached picture of the faucet.

Normally when you turn on the water it is directed to the faucet that fills the bathtub by default. If you want to redirect water to the shower head above instead, you simply pull the "pin" (see picture attached, circled in red). The pin is supposed to stay out by the force of the water pressure. When you turn off the water, the pressure drops and the pin pulls back in.

My problem is this: Everything works just fine when the pin is pulled out, but it seems to have trouble staying out and keeps wanting to pop back in, thus sending the water to the bathtub, not the shower head like I'm wanting. Sometimes you can get it to stay out but it's very annoying. The plumbing is new and this faucet, about 3 yrs old, has actually exhibited this behavior since it was new and installed.

My question is what could be causing this and how should I go about troubleshooting? My guesses are:
1. The water pressure is too low and doesn't have enough force to keep that pin popped out...??
2. The installation is incorrect in some way?
3. The faucet, although new, is defective.

Anyone have experience on an issue like this? Thanks in advance for any information/help.

 

[jagans]

Whats Your pressure?

 

[ferrugia]

Whats Your pressure?

I don't know. Is there an easy way to gauge it or does this require purchasing a tool?

Thanks for the response.

 

[TarheelTerp]

The plumbing is new and this faucet, about 3 yrs old, has actually exhibited this behavior since it was new and installed.

I have the same type of faucet in the shower here.
I also have 120psi incoming water pressure (PRV'ed down to 55)

Mine stays engaged even after the water is turned off...
only 'resetting' after (then the water in the rise pipe drains back).

hth

 

[gregzoll]

From the age of that unit, I would have to say that most likely the insides are clogged with minerals and scale. When was the last time that you took the cartridge out? As for that part you pull to divert water from faucet to shower, any mineral in any valves, will cause low water pressure.

 

[ferrugia]

I have the same type of faucet in the shower here.
I also have 120psi incoming water pressure (PRV'ed down to 55)

Mine stays engaged even after the water is turned off...
only 'resetting' after (then the water in the rise pipe drains back).

hth

How are you able to tell your pressures? The pressure is decent in that bathroom... not a trickle, but not coming out anything like a fire hose either.

Actually small correction from what I originally said: The pin gets pushed IN (I initially said pull out) to switch to the shower head. As soon as I shut off the water it immediately pops back out (aka to the position where it would come out of the bathtub faucet).

I just went up there now and it's working like a charm. So I don't know what's causing it to be intermittent (again, unless the pressure is lower at certain points -- I dunno, say if I'm running the water or something else that might take a bit of water). Maybe I should test it under "load"...??

 

[ferrugia]

From the age of that unit, I would have to say that most likely the insides are clogged with minerals and scale. When was the last time that you took the cartridge out? As for that part you pull to divert water from faucet to shower, any mineral in any valves, will cause low water pressure.

Thanks but, as I said, the unit is pretty new. It was installed about 3 yrs ago with new plumbing to the upstairs in my home and has only been used for about 1 yr of that time. So it really hasn't gotten a ton of use to think there would be a lot of build up of calcium or other minerals. I wasn't aware there is a filter though.. ?? What's the life expectancy on these?

I'm wondering if a different faucet type would be best. Is it very difficult to replace one of these if I purchase a new one at Home Depot or Lowes? I just looked online at videos and it looks very easy as long as the main valve doesn't have to come off. Is this pin that pushes in part of that valve?

Thank you

 

[gregzoll]

Yes, you have to be able to get to the manifold on the other side, so you do not have to tear into the tile surround. And also just because you just replaced the unit, does not mean that it has gotten clogged from junk and debris. especially if your area in the past three years has flushed hydrants if you are on city water, or if you have a well, sand and gunk has gotten up there to cause not enough pressure for the diverter to stay pulled out.

Check with the manufacturer if you do not have the instructions anymore, they may be able to tell you how to dismantle it to fix the pull-out.

 

[ferrugia]

Yes, you have to be able to get to the manifold on the other side, so you do not have to tear into the tile surround. And also just because you just replaced the unit, does not mean that it has gotten clogged from junk and debris. especially if your area in the past three years has flushed hydrants if you are on city water, or if you have a well, sand and gunk has gotten up there to cause not enough pressure for the diverter to stay pulled out.

Check with the manufacturer if you do not have the instructions anymore, they may be able to tell you how to dismantle it to fix the pull-out.

Thanks. Yes, that's a good idea and I have it on to list to call Moen tomorrow (they are already closed for this evening). I'll see what they have to say and report back.

Thanks for the responses.

 

[TarheelTerp]

How are you able to tell your pressures?

I had low pressure issues that it turns out (surprise!) were related
to the one piece of galvanized still in use here since 1959 when the house was built.

So... when I did that repair and some other pipe work took advantage of having the water off to add a couple of $9 gauges with TEE fittings
(one gauge above and one gauge below the new PRV).
Life is good.

 

[ferrugia]

Talked to Moen customer service. This part that's broken is referred to as the "diverter" (makes sense). Moen told me the diverter can be replaced separately so they are going to send me a replacement part. Sounds pretty easy to replace the diverter. Will report back in a week or two when the part arrives and I do the install.

 

[ferrugia]

One problem solved... with a question

Here's the culprit. It was in fact the diverter. Moen sent me a new replacement diverter and the problem was very evident when I compared the old diverter to the new diverter. The old diverter isn't working properly and it's hard to push in/out. The new one is very easy to push in/out.

My question is this: It seems the diverter might be a little bit "gummed" up. Is this from soap/etc in the bathtub/shower probably?... or more from the water source. This is in the upstairs of my home which has new plumbing so I'm wondering what could cause this if it's coming from the pipes.... not soap scum, etc in the shower that could possibly get into the diverter.

Any thoughts appreciated. Glad to have the diverter working normally now. Thank you.

 

[gregzoll]

There should be no soap scum getting into the potable water. There is a grease that they use in the valves when they package them, since they may sit on shelves for some time, but it wears away after a while. If I had to guess, it may be how your city water may be, if they soften theirs like our city utility does.

Our water from our city, tends to cause salt build up after a while in valves, since they soften the water, along with the other chemicals they inject to keep the water lines in good shape, etc.. After 9 years, the faucet that is in our Kitchen, when I took it apart to try and figure out why the hot water was getting worse in flow, I found enough salt buildup in the line, that after cleaning that out, and replacing the hot & cold valves with 1/4 turn ball valves, everything work like a pro.

 

[ferrugia]

gregzoll,

Thanks for the response and that's good to know. If this is just how it is then I'm ok with it -- I just wanted to make sure there wasn't potentially something wrong with my water/pipes that I should be aware of.

Thanks for the response and expertise. This was a super easy job with the info from you guys.