Built my house in 2005. We have a tankless hot water heater. It appears to be working fine. Plenty of hot water from other faucets.
Guest bathroom shower is all from original contractor install. Single-lever ball handle, American Standard – lift to start water flow, turn handle to adjust temperature.
About three weeks ago, I noticed that the water in the shower is either totally cold or too hot. I can't get a "warm" temperature. If it's too hot, for example, and I "nudge" the lever to the right, the water becomes completely cold. And vice versa.
The water pressure, regardless of temperature, seems fine. I do not notice a drop in pressure whether the temp is all cold or all hot.
So, before I call a plumber, I am wondering if this is possibly the sign of a bad cartridge, which I think I can replace on my own and skip the repair bill. However, I really don't want to waste my time disassembling the faucet if a bad cartridge could not be causing this problem.
Would appreciate your thoughts. Thank you!
Best Answer
Yes a bad cartridge can be the issue.
I speak from experience, you may want to forgo buying said cartridge until you take it apart and inspect the valve and parts.
Often times pieces of plastic, rock, minerals, bad sweat 'balls' and other contaminants can get in there and bind the mixing valve in the cartridge.
Also, if you find it is cracked, warped, or otherwise damaged, you might want to get the replacement from a reputable parts supplier. I was stunned to see that Home Depot was selling all plastic and Kohler OEM part was 90% metal (OEM, pronounced as separate letters, is short for "original equipment manufacturer").
I tried the Home Depot part to no avail. The OEM part worked and continued working at least for 8 years until I sold the place.