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December 19, 2008
Cover Up in the Shower
Q: Hey Ed, I'm an expert handyman at home, but I'm stumped with a plumbing issue in my shower. We want to remove our old three-handle shower valve and install a new one-handle tub/shower valve with scald protection. However, I measured the cover plate for the new one-handle valve, and it won't completely cover the two outside holes once I remove the old valve and open up the wall. My home center says they have no larger cover plates, and now my wife wants to pull a fast one and redo the entire tub and shower! Ed, I know you can save me a lot of money... do they make larger cover plates that will fit the new valve and cover all the holes? George_Missouri
A: George, please send my apologies to your wife since you should not have to remodel your entire tub and shower unit.
First, nice job on wanting to update your old three-handle shower valve. Older tub and shower valves without scald protection can be very unsafe. In most areas of the country, codes require that you install new shower valves with scald protection, so you're doing the right thing for your home and family.
Your issue is very common since most one-handle shower valve cover plates are about 6 - 7 inches in diameter, and the spread needed to cover an old three handle valve is about 10 - 12 inches. Since it is a common plumbing problem, some manufactures do make larger special order cover plates; contact your valve manufacturer to see if one is available.
If not, there is a backup trick that plumbers use. You need to find a plumbing supply house in your area that carries a "remodeling plate" or what many plumbers call a "goof plate." This is a large stainless steel plate shaped kind of like a football. This plate should cover all the existing holes and allow mounting of the new valve as well. I've personally installed many of these kits, and they do the trick as long as you follow the manufacturer's instructions.
Also, with the money you save, I highly recommend you get your wife something special so she'll love the new shower valve as much as you do!
Posted by Ed Del Grande at 2:45 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
December 12, 2008
New Toilet Comes Up Short
Q: Ed, I'm from Canada and we really enjoy your column up here as well! My situation is that I'm replacing one of my old toilets, and when I removed it, I found that the rough drain hole is 16" away from the wall. My new toilet has a drain that is a 12" rough. My present solution is to pad out the wall a few inches so the new toilet won't extend so far into the room. Any other ideas before I do all that work?
Jack, Canada
A: Greeting from New England, Jack, and hello to all my readers in Canada!
Good news: They do make special-order 14" rough drain toilets, and that was probably the type of toilet you removed. I suspect your old toilet did stick out from the wall an inch or two since your drain is "roughed-in" a little long, even for a 14" rough toilet.
Installing the 12" toilet on your 16" drain is not recommended since now you can end up with a 4" gap from wall to toilet tank. Also, the padded wall will be a lot more work than simply ordering a new 14" rough toilet.
Fortunately, most manufactures do make toilets in 10", 12" and 14" models, so the style and color of the new toilet you picked out should not change at all. Also, as long as a toilet is in its original packing and has not been installed, most home centers should give you full credit towards the special order toilet.
Sorry you had a such a "rough" break on this job, Jack!
Posted by Ed Del Grande at 2:39 PM | TrackBack
December 9, 2008
Imperfect Pitch
Q: Dear Ed, our home was built by the previous owner, and we have had problems with our bathroom sink plugging up. When I investigated the drain line in the basement, I found the drain line to be running uphill instead of downhill. I installed a new line with the proper pitch and now the sink drains fine. However, now we keep getting a sewer smell from the sink. What is going on and how can we fix this?
Jim (Texas)
A: Well, it seems the previous owner made two mistakes.
First he installed the drain line with what's called a "negative pitch." That means the pipe does not run downhill from the fixture, and it will eventually plug up. Now that you have installed a drain with perfect pitch, it should be draining much faster.
However, this may be creating a vacuum in the line and my guess is that... problem number two: there is no vent on the line to break the vacuum. This may siphon out the trap water, and there's the issue. When a trap is empty, sewer gases will get in through the drains.
You may need to install a vent line or "auto-vent" control on the drain to stop trap siphoning (and the bad smell.) And trust me, this is not stinky advice: Always call in a licensed plumber to help out with any home plumbing vent problems!
Posted by Ed Del Grande at 10:25 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
December 5, 2008
Ed's Top 5 Holiday Tools
The Holiday season is here again, and the most popular question I get this time of year is: "Hey Ed, what are some good ideas for gift tools that I can buy for friends and family?" As luck would have it, in my new book I wrote a complete chapter on buying tools and I'd like to share some of that information with you for the holidays. Here are some excerpts from "Ed Del Grande's House Call" (Viking Studio) and out of the dozens of tools I reviewed for the book, these are my "Top 5" favorite gift tools:
5. Stud Finder - When they first came out many years ago, I was not a big fan of this tool. It always seemed that I could find the stud better than the "stud finder." But nowadays they make stud finders that are easy to operate and, more important, they're pretty accurate. Keep in mind my golden rule with studs: You'll never find a stud when you're looking for one, but you'll always find a stud whenever you're trying to avoid one!
4. Chalk Line - A really fun tool! When you need a long straight line to mark things like sheets of plywood, just give the canister that holds the line a shake, stretch out the line like a fishing reel, give it a snap, and magically a perfect straight line appears. This tool is very old-school and very easy to use. No batteries needed!
3. Torpedo Level - This is a very accurate nine-inch long, impact-resistant level that will fit in most toolboxes. Its bigger brothers, the two-foot and four-foot levels, can be inconvenient to carry around and hold when you work alone. Most torpedo levels also have magnetic strips that attach to metal surfaces for "hands free" operation. This is one of those tools you'll find yourself using a lot!
2. Grabbing Tool or Mechanical Grip - It's called a few different names in different areas of the country, but there's no mistaking what this tool does: It grabs objects in very narrow tight spaces such as a drain line or a garbage disposer. It's a small flexible auger with a button that can be depressed on one end. When the button is pushed, four tiny metal fingers come out of the opposite end, and once the fingers wrap around the object, releasing the button will "grip" or "grab" hold of the object. Hence the name.
1. Toilet Auger - This is my number one choice because it will save you the most money on service calls. This is the granddaddy of all toilet tools! When a plunger just won't cut it and it's time to send in the big guns, grab your trusty auger. This is a short, stocky, flexible steel snake about four feet long, with a crank handle on top. Use care because it can easily scratch the bowl, but in my book, (Also a nice present.) a toilet auger is the gift that keeps on giving!
