# How to fix an American Standard Faucet



## Tango (Jan 13, 2018)

In order to fix a leaking American Standard Faucet on a roman tub this is what you have to do. It was installed 4 years ago.


Leaking diverter, remove spout....Ok it worked, the store gave her an incorrect longer stem...I swapped the o-rings. Turn the water on, no leaks until called 40 minutes later and her ceiling is wet. So I look at her instructions sheet the spout shank has O-ring under the tub...Great Impossible to get to!

The second complaint the handles were were opening the wrong way. The instruction says to turn the escutcheon and pull on the handle....Handles seized after 4 years of installation...Great!


So today I repaired the faucet completely as if it was new. All you have to do is cut a hole in the tile skirt and few maneuvers to to get to the shank O-ring.


----------



## Tango (Jan 13, 2018)

Got to go back on monday so I'll take pics of the repair. Did I ever say this brand sucks? On second thought, I hope I get more of these if you know what I mean...:wink:


----------



## Alan (Jun 18, 2008)

I just have to say they don't make stuff like they used to.

I've repaired tons of american standard faucets/tub valves. Sometimes yeah they get abused and let to leak longer than they should and then they are seized and difficult to disassemble.

I wouldn't call the brand junk though.


----------



## The Dane (Feb 19, 2015)

I am not a fan of American standard at all. I would take it over some of the big box stores brands like p-fister. I much prefer Moen and if I get a call for a leaky faucet and it's an American standard I would offer to repair it but also tell the customer that it can also be replaced with a new and better faucet if they so choose. If it's a box store brand I get called out for I immediately tell the customer that it's going to be replaced unless they want to deal with the headache of finding parts and doing it themselves

Sent from my BLN-L24 using Tapatalk


----------



## fixitright (Jan 5, 2012)

Drain cleaning is much easier. Sometimes.


----------



## Alan (Jun 18, 2008)

fixitright said:


> Drain cleaning is much easier. Sometimes.


:vs_laugh::vs_laugh::vs_laugh::vs_laugh::vs_laugh:


----------



## Tango (Jan 13, 2018)

fixitright said:


> Drain cleaning is much easier. Sometimes.


Job like those I get home so god damn tired I had to lay down. I even overslept 2 hours on saturday morning.

I'll take pictures next time to show how many tools and stuff to swap one out.


----------



## ShtRnsdownhill (Jan 13, 2016)

Alan said:


> I just have to say they don't make stuff like they used to.
> 
> I've repaired tons of american standard faucets/tub valves. Sometimes yeah they get abused and let to leak longer than they should and then they are seized and difficult to disassemble.
> 
> I wouldn't call the brand junk though.


KOLHER SUCKS !!!!!:vs_laugh::vs_laugh:..it looks good and will last if you dont use it, but they suck every way it can..lol...


----------



## Tango (Jan 13, 2018)

I replaced that faucet with a Moen she bought. First time its one of those you have to solder the parts. It was easier than those freaking flex hose in a tight space and where stubs can never be tight and after a few month everything is loose and wobbles.

I still have to go back though, the pyramid escutcheons/handle assembly are just screwed in place by hand and you can turn them easily. The woman says they are loose and is scared water will drip under them into the main floor. I told her if I put them tighter the square radius will scratch the tub, but she's the customer!

I will be siliconing them tomorrow EVEN Though I did like the instruction that said to put silicone on the washers under the tub which I think is intended create a water seal. I'll do the same to the spout.

Should I put putty instead of silicone on top of the tub and underneath the escutcheons? Silicone may make them hard to pull out in the future. (putty might shear out when turning the escutcheons/handle assembly into place)


----------



## Alan (Jun 18, 2008)

Seems like nowadays everything in terms of trim kit is coming with it's own o-ring or built in foam gasket.

I also can't stand that square crap for that reason, and I also do not like mounting tub trim to the fiberglass. 

I would do whatever the mfg suggests and CYA.


----------



## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

Tango said:


> In order to fix a leaking American Standard Faucet on a roman tub this is what you have to do. It was installed 4 years ago.
> 
> 
> Leaking diverter, remove spout....Ok it worked, the store gave her an incorrect longer stem...I swapped the o-rings. Turn the water on, no leaks until called 40 minutes later and her ceiling is wet. So I look at her instructions sheet the spout shank has O-ring under the tub...Great Impossible to get to!
> ...
























So you had to cut that faucet out like that just to get to a leaking 'O' ring? Wow.


----------



## ShtRnsdownhill (Jan 13, 2016)

Tango said:


> I replaced that faucet with a Moen she bought. First time its one of those you have to solder the parts. It was easier than those freaking flex hose in a tight space and where stubs can never be tight and after a few month everything is loose and wobbles.
> 
> I still have to go back though, the pyramid escutcheons/handle assembly are just screwed in place by hand and you can turn them easily. The woman says they are loose and is scared water will drip under them into the main floor. I told her if I put them tighter the square radius will scratch the tub, but she's the customer!
> 
> ...


silicone, I dont worry about taking it apart 10 years down the road, I put them together to stay, putty sucks...silicone helps hold the whole thing in place...:devil3:


----------



## Tango (Jan 13, 2018)

Tommy plumber said:


> So you had to cut that faucet out like that just to get to a leaking 'O' ring? Wow.


I was making a pun on how to fix it because in reality it wasn't possible without scrapping it. The woman called back and saw the ceiling wet after I fixed it.

The circle is where there is an O-ring inside and as I tried to remove the diverter nut. It moved and it started to leak without me knowing it. The the spray hose is attached to that end too so unless there was a hole in the skirt it was impossible to repair.

I also indicated lines where I had to cut the handles off to be able to remove the assembly. That faucet is absolutely a dumbest design I've ever seen.


So in order to fix it I replaced with a customer supplied Moen and she will rampage back to the store where she got it for a refund, replacement who knows?


----------



## Tango (Jan 13, 2018)

Finally completed. I went the extra mile and returned today to put silicone where she wanted to.

If you wonder she didn't want to have another shower spray to avoid water dripping down into the receptacle and possibly wetting the ceiling again. She said she now had a phobia of water damage. I said I knew that very well as I get a lot of them doing service calls.


----------



## skoronesa (Oct 27, 2015)

I believe in two things when building a house.


Basement basement basement. Or slab. None of this in between crap.


And don't put anything more than a half bath on the second floor if you aren't prepared to open the floor or ceiling at some point in the future.


----------

