Bathtub Diverter valve in bathtub faucet

Hello people-- Our home is built in the 1940's. It is a dormered cape cod-- well kept etc etc. Our downstairs bathroom on the main floor had a fiberglass enclosure installed like a bath fitter type by the original owners over 30 years ago. We have not touched it since. Not broken - dont fix it- a little old fashioned but clean and operates well.
But the tub faucet lets out a lot of water when we shower- I pull up on the diverter valve thingy- and the shower works BUT still lots of water comes out of the faucet itself. I went online and saw some videos on how to fix the diverter valve or replace the whole faucet spigot. My only fear- is that being that the faucet etc has not been touched for as i said over 30 years- I am quite leary about trying this myself- it seems easy- BUT what if I CRACK something or break something-- would you recommend that i have someone come in and do this or try this myself if it is in fact an easy fix - by repairing or installing new?? Please advise.

 

First off can you identify the faucet brand? If so you can go to the manufacturer for parts or help. But be prepared to replace the whole valve set if need be. Can you get access from the back side?

 

You'll have to tell us what kind of diverter your shower has. Some have the diverter built into the valve body while others have it in the tub spout. Either way you'll have to decide if it's worth the risk to attempt a repair.

 

I am not sure what manufacturer it is-- and like I said it is flush against the fiberglass backing- and has been there since we moved in over 30 years ago-- the tub does NOT leak at all- its just that the water leaks more than it should from the faucet when in shower mode.
What I also would like to know- being that it does that- am I using MORE water than needed when showering- or is it just that water is coming from both ends so to speak-- like if the diverter was fixed- would the water that is coming out of the faucet now going to come out of the shower head instead??
Last question-- from seeing the many videos on how to fix- it seems there are only two fixes- one is to replace the diverter- and one is to replace the whole faucet spigot- so why would I need to know what I was asked above-- wouldn't all I need to do is to remove the spigot faucet and see if I can remove that diverter valve and washer and replace or if not just use a totally new one? My only fear as mentioned early- is that it m ight be so totally hardened onto this fiberglass backing etc etc that my trying to loosen it will screw something else up behind it??

 

How about you send us a picture? As PD mentioned you can have one of two possibilities. If the diverter is in the spout then that should be pretty straight forward. remove spout and replace with anew one.

And no you're not using any more water one way or the other.

 

I was not asking for another description of your shower surround. In order to help you we need to know what type of diverter valve you have. There are three basic types that you "pull on". One type has the knob you pull on top of the tub spout, the second type has a ring on the end of the tub spout you pull down and the third is on the shower valve body.

 

I am trying to attach the pic I took from cell phone-But I am not seeing how to do it??

 

hello again I think I figured it out-- attached see the pick of the bathtub faucet and the fiberglass tub enclosure it sits on for the past 35 years.(remember no leaks) except for water coming out in shower mode from the faucet..

 

Attached see the amount of water coming out of faucet while in shower mode,,,

 

With the stopper in the middle of the spout it's easiest to replace the entire spout. First, feel/look at the bottom side of your spout near the wall for any holes. If there is a hole there is probably a set screw inside that you loosen to remove the spout. More likely your spout is simply threaded in plane. Turn it counter clockwise and it should unscrew. Because of it's age, corrosion and mineral deposits it could be stuck quite solidly.

 

no set screw-- guess i will just have to turn the spout only.- are the lengths of the new spout all the same as the one I will be removing?? and also- I saw a video of this type of pull up diverter- it show a plastic type of clip that you can remove and try to clean up etc etc and that might be the only fix needed?? is that something i should try first before buying a whole new spout? Thanks.

 

When you take the spout off, take a look at it. If if looks corroded with calcium build up you can try soaking it in Lime-a-Way or CLR.

When get the old spout off send us a pic of the spout and the pipe nipple it was attached to.

 

Spout's like yours I generally consider disposable. While the mechanism is simple it can be difficult to get the diverter gate out of faucets like yours (it's easier with the knob at the end of the spout) without breaking something. Luckily spouts are inexpensive. You may have to get or make a different length pipe nipple to work with your new spout.

 

Considerable water waste can occur with a bad diverter.

Tub spouts are often made of an aluminum alloy that corrodes easily, and the "valve seat" of the diverter does not seal well due to cracking and swelling of the corroding aluminum and/or accumulation of sediment.