Bathtub faucets: Not so complicated!

Trolling my favorite blogs today and came upon a Curbed reader with a home-related question. My inclination is to dive in after all the snarky commenters and set the record straight. But I think I would look a big old geek, so I'll quietly post my nerdy answer here (after consulting with my guru of home repair, colleague Mark Powers).

Start by taking a trip to the hardware store. For about $10, you can get everything you probably need for this fix. And it doesn't involve making any holes in the wall. Here's what to do:

Get yourself a special plumbing tool called a deep socket (looks like a hexagonal tube with a little hole on either end), as well as various sized rubber washers, a brass valve seat, and finally a valve seat wrench. Maybe ask the hardware store clerk to show you all these things and be prepared to describe the type of faucet you have (old-fashioned cross handles, bulbous Delta faucet handles, etc).

Before you start, shove a rag in the tub drain so you don't lose anything. Then find out where the water turns off (it might not be in your apartment) and make sure it's totally off. If you had to get the super to do this, this would be a good time to invite him back to your apartment for a little plumbing lesson.

First you pop the "H" or "C" plastic cover off of the faucet. Then you unscrew the screw that's just inside there and pull off the whole faucet handle. (If it's all crusty, some vinegar will get rid of the minerals, or maybe a spritz with some WD-40 will loosen it up.)

Now you're looking at the bare end of the valve stem. You may need to take of a plate that's covering the hole in the wall, maybe held on with a tiny screw on the side. (That plate is called the escutcheon.)

Now slide that hexagonal tube deep socket over the stem (probably a little inside the wall), and use the stick that comes with it to turn it and unscrew the stem. When you get the stem off look at the other end. There's a washer there. It's probably all messed up―worse so from all that extra tightening you've been doing (not good). Take out the little screw that holds it on and replace the washer.

Also take a flashlight and check out the thing the stem goes into. It will look like this picture. If the brass thing inside looks all bent and crappy, use the seat wrench (a stick with a little square nub at the end) to unscrew that (like this next picture), and replace it with your new brass valve seat. Now put the whole thing back together the way you took it apart.

That should work for most New York apartment tubs. If worse comes to worse, take your parts back to the hardware store and they'll be able to give you a replacement.

And send the receipt to the super.