How to Clean a Clogged Shower Cartridge | Ask This Old House

Ask This Old House plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey travels to New York City to teach a homeowner how to clean her shower cartridge when it gets clogged

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Time: 3-4 hours

Cost: $0

Skill Level: Moderate

Tools:

Shopping List:

Steps for cleaning a clogged shower cartridge:
1. Start by covering up the shower drain with a drop cloth to prevent any pieces from falling down the drain.
2. Remove the handles, escutcheons, and cover plate for the shower valve.
a. This will vary, depending on the manufacturer. In general, look for small circles that could be concealing screws that are holding the handles in place. These can usually be removed with an Allen wrench.
b. Be careful to loosen only the handles and not actually turn them; otherwise, the water will turn on.
3. Shut the hot and cold water lines off. Sometimes, these will be in the wall next to the valve and can be closed with a screwdriver and with a shutoff. If not, the water may need to be shut off at the main line.
4. Loosen the nut holding the shower cartridge in place with an open end adjustable wrench.
5. Carefully pull the shower cartridge straight out of the valve. Do this carefully to prevent any damage to either the cartridge or the valve.
6. Scrub the cartridge until all impurities are off of it. This can be done with any soft bristled brush, including a toothbrush, and a little bit of water.
7. In a bowl, mix a little bit of water and white vinegar. Soak the cartridge in the mixture for a couple of hours.
8. Place the cartridge back in the valve and tighten it in place with the nut.
9. Turn the hot and cold water back on.
10. Add the cover plate, escutcheons, and shower handles based on the manufacturer’s design.

Resources:

In some cases, the cartridge might just need to be cleaned, which can be done with a little bit of vinegar and a toothbrush, which can be found at any grocery store.

A 4-in-1 screwdriver and a pair of slip joint pliers are needed to remove the trim and access the cartridge. These can also be found at home centers.

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Homeowners have a virtual truckload of questions for us on smaller projects, and we're ready to answer. Ask This Old House solves the steady stream of home improvement problems faced by our viewers—and we make house calls! Ask This Old House features some familiar faces from This Old House, including Kevin O'Connor, general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, and landscape contractor Jenn Nawada.

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How to Clean a Clogged Shower Cartridge | Ask This Old House

[MichaelAuslanderJr]

This is like the 10th straight video that hasn’t hit subscription boxes. @ This Old House your YouTube post settings are screwed up.

[prestoncox]

Perfect demonstration for what I need. Thanks ToH team

[bengt_axle]

It's 2020 and they still use pine slats of wood to make a huge water tight tank that sits on top of all other apartments? Wow, that's cool. BTW, some cartridges do not have screens, and if you hear some rattling it may be the rust particles and sediment that are trapped in the valve body.

[lordlucan]

A good instruction video for people with little or no experience . The only thing i would do as a beginner would be to lay out all the removed parts / screws / covers in the positions i removed them to ensure everything goes back exactly as it was . How many times have i ended up with diffferent length screws and different length chrome covers . The other thing i once had was the delight to find the tiler had left no room to even get a spanner into the recess, out came the grinder and diamond blade .

[txshah]

TOH is a great show. Keep up the good work

[MrEpwn]

I'm just here to listen to Richard pronounce the word "water"

[mp-xtrg]

Wouldn't it just make more sense to install a filter where the line comes in? They're cheap. Swap the elements every year and avoid the hassle.

[PaulKing]

This looks like a brand new valve with non-crusty threads. Any tips for if the valve has a lot of hard water and is reluctant to come off?

[allentoyokawa]

There are big cities all over, yet they still use old fashion tanks like this in NYC?

[DeWittPotts]

The water system that feeds New York City is over a century old. The reservoirs are up in Ulster County and the water flows down to the city without the use of pumps. The whole system is gravity fed and there are no filters on the water. That means that sediment from the reservoir will end up in the rooftop water tanks.

[martyvanord]

There is one thing in addition to sediment, occasionally an animal will die in the tank. A filtration system like a reverse osmosis filter or a bacteria-rated ceramic filter is a good idea. That is if drinking the water.

[sonix]

Hi thanks for the video. I have a similar 3 dial shower but having difficulty removing the dials off; managed to use an allen key for the bottom dial but can't seem to get the others off as the key doesn't turn. I've tried tapping with a hammer with no luck. What's the best way to get these off in this situation?

[alexshuparski]

Geometry of tank has nothing to do with the water pressure, you gain about half a PSI per foot of elevation. That vessel can be 100 feet across or 2 inches pressure at the bottom is going to be identical if height is equal.

[bert]

I had no idea that there are water towers in New York. Btw, a little silicone grease on the orings wouldn't be a bad idea

[sleekmr]

Thanks for this video. I think my shower cartridge is clogged. I'm getting more hot water than cold. All the other faucets in the home is fine but the shower gets mostly warm to hot water. Gonna attempt a cleaning after watching this video. If I use cleaning vinegar to soak the cartridge do you still recommend mixing it with water?

[vegajf]

I could never imagine living in a place like this... no yard, driveway, place for kids to play, having to get permission to do stuff in your own home.... I always find it amazing how other people live and assume they think similarly of the way I live.... LOL

[samathsamath]

Only problem you have to do this frequently. Any thoughts

[RobertLeBlancPhoto]

I'd install a "whole house" filtration system, at least a cartridge pre-filter for my apartment. No way I'm gonna put up with that in a luxury apartment in NYC.

[dwarden]

Dont forget to purge the line and lubed the orings before reassembly.

[kef]

Why didn’t you flush the rough in valve in the wall before putting the cartridge back? I did and what came out at first was NASTY … I would not want my water going through that junk