Water that gets behind tiled shower walls ruins drywall and can rot framing. After you have the screws out, you may need to wiggle or tap on the handle to get it to slide off the stem. If you don’t have an access panel, you might be able to replace the faucet by cutting a hole in the shower surround (Problem 3 below), but the best solution is to install a paintable plastic panel behind the faucet. ... the damage is usually confined to the wall where the showerhead and faucet is located, ... serious plumbing problem that must be fixed before you repair the damaged wall—or at the same time that you open the wall to repair it. Removing your old valve and installing a new one can take time, but with patience, a novice handyman can do it without the help of a plumber. If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. To remove the nut, hold the valve while you unscrew the nut with a wrench. One of the signs of shower leaking behind wall on … The plate covers the old valve holes and you do the entire job through the hole you cut in the tile. If it is, however, your new cartridge should come with its own valve clip. 6. How to fit a concealed shower by plumbing in the valves and and pipe work behind tiles and enclosures. Shower faucet cover plates, also called escutcheons, are installed behind your shower knob on the shower wall. In this example, the faucet opening in the wall had to be enlarged to remove the protective plate. There might be many reasons to replace a shower faucet, but a common one is to install a new pressure-balanced valve that senses fluctuations in the system and keeps the water temperature constant, even if other fixtures and appliances are running while someone is showering. Shut the water off and cut the old valve out of the wall, leaving the appropriate amount copper for the new valve. Usually, the water stops will have flat head screw heads that let you turn them on and off. If there are 2 stops for hot and cold water, shut off both. The shower valve used here has both outside-threaded connections and inside sweat (solder) couplings. For more tips, including how to keep small parts from falling own the drain, keep reading! Remove the cap from the valve by unscrewing the brass screw from each side of the valve. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/d\/d2\/Replace-a-Shower-Valve-Step-1.jpg\/v4-460px-Replace-a-Shower-Valve-Step-1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/d\/d2\/Replace-a-Shower-Valve-Step-1.jpg\/aid9752157-v4-728px-Replace-a-Shower-Valve-Step-1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"