Faucet Repair and Replacement

A tap that drips once a second wastes a surprising volume of water in twelve months, and the cure is usually a small worn seal.

Sinks & fixtures specialists

Old part shown to you first

Plain talk about repair or replace

Common parts already on the van

Licensed & insured (details on request)

Price agreed before work

Local to Richmond Hill

What wears inside a faucet

Rubber washers on older compression taps
Ceramic cartridges in single-lever faucets, which scale up in hard water
O-rings around spouts that let water weep from the base
Diverter valves in pull-down sprayers
Aerators clogged with grit, causing weak, spitting flow

The repair

Close the stop valves under the basin and open the tap to release pressure.
Plug the drain so small screws cannot fall in.
Remove the handle and trim, then pull the cartridge or stem.
Match the part by brand and model, clean the valve body of scale.
Reassemble with silicone grease on the O-rings and test hot and cold.

Repair or replace?

Quality faucets are worth rebuilding for decades. Inexpensive ones with discontinued parts, corroded bodies or cracked spouts are often better replaced. We will tell you which way we would go. Stop valves under the basin that will not close fully should be changed at the same visit.

If the problem is low pressure everywhere, not just one tap, see low water pressure causes. For shower and tub controls, see shower valve replacement, and for a new sink, see kitchen sink installation.

The short version

Tell-tale signs

Lever spins loose or grinds to turn
Wet hose bib or stain behind the washer box
Spout drips with the lever fully closed
Swollen particleboard at the bottom of the vanity

Kit on the van

Basin wrench and cartridge puller
Quarter-turn stops and braided connectors
Tubular trap kits in white plastic and chrome
Putty, silicone and thread tape

How we go about it

Dry every joint with paper and look again in ten minutes
Shut both stops and open the tap to bleed it
Strip the fixture and look at seats, seals and threads
Fit the new cartridge, supplies or the whole unit

Your questions, answered plainly

Do you install faucets I buy myself?

Yes, as long as it suits your sink and counter; we will check holes and connections first.

Why does my fresh faucet have low flow?

Debris from the lines often lodges in the new aerator; it needs a quick clean.