Appliance Repair Caroll Gardens

Think about it. You walk into the kitchen or bathroom and, as you have done thousands of times before, you reach for the handle of the faucet and turn on the water. Have you noticed anything? Probably not. You turn off the faucet and continue on your way. Because you use the faucet everyday, what you don't notice is that gradually the internal parts of the faucet gain a buildup of minerals from the water, and the parts wear. This causes the internal parts to resist movement and thus, the handle is increasingly difficult to move. Think of it as arthritis in the faucet joints.

The good news is that you can save a lot of money by repairing the faucet yourself. Don't be afraid of plumbing. With a few common tools and some guidance, even the novice can accomplish the task and become a hero to your spouse or friend. Following, I have listed a few simple steps to help you repair a single lever faucet. I am only detailing the repair of a single lever faucet in this article because the steps for repairing this faucet are unique and I don't have the space here to explain a multi lever faucet.

Please read the entire article prior to beginning the repair process. You can refer to the steps once you have started the repair to refresh your memory.

Steps to repair a single lever faucet

1) First of all, determine the brand and type of faucet you are repairing; if you can actually locate a brand imprint on the faucet that helps immensely. There are more than 100 different brands of faucets. Most of them use different parts. A digital camera can be a great tool if you cannot find the name of the faucet. Take a picture of the faucet and show the picture to the plumbing supply store clerk. Odds are, when an experienced clerk sees the picture, he or she will know immediately what brand it is.

2) Once you have the brand of the faucet or a picture, you can buy the repair parts. You can either go to the big box type stores or a local hardware; they each have their own particular strong points. Describe the symptoms of the sick faucet to the clerk. Is the handle difficult to move? Does the faucet leak water around the base of the spout? (Kitchen faucets are notorious for this.) The clerk will know what parts to give you, and you may not have to return to the store multiple times because you are missing the right parts. If you are repairing a Moen brand faucet, it is a good idea to purchase a "puller" tool to remove the old cartridge. There are differing types of cartridge removal tools; an inexpensive plastic design is available or more expensive heavy duty metal ones. For the homeowner, the cheaper plastic one should work just fine. The faucet can be repaired without the tool, but it is much easier to use the removal tool. (When making repairs, the lowest priority for me is saving a few cents on parts. I would much rather frequent a store or supplier that stocks a wide variety of quality parts and employs knowledgeable and helpful staff.)

3) TURN THE WATER OFF TO THE FAUCET. Did I emphasis this enough? Turn off the water before you disassemble the tap. There are usually small valves in the back of the sink cabinet. They can be brown or chrome. If you're like all the Americans I have worked for in my career, your sink cabinet is stuffed full of bottles and cleaning products. The valves are buried beneath every type of shampoo and cleaning product. Toss in a hair dryer, makeup, spare soap and toothpaste and...well, you get the idea. Dig through the debris and locate the valves. If the valves won't turn easily, you may have to find the main water shut-off valve for the house and turn off the water there. If you need help in finding the main water valve, check out the article on how to do this at my website.

Once the water has been turned off, close the drain stopper in the sink. This little trick was taught me by another plumber over 30 years ago. What is the reason? The reason for this is that you will most likely drop a small gasket or screw while disassembling the tap. The closed stopper will prevent the small part from going down the drain. Brilliant. You can find detailed illustrations of the parts and the disassembly of the faucet on the manufacturer's website.

5) Remove the handle. There is often a removable plastic lid which covers the handle screw. Remove the lid by prying it off. Some handles are attached with a set screw at the side of handle, not the top. With a little investigation, you should be able to tell.

6) Once the handle is removed you will see some type of device which secures the replaceable parts in place. This is sometimes a horseshoe-shaped metal clip which slides out. Sometimes it's a round cap with a threaded hole that unscrews. Remove the retaining cap or clip.

Some brands of faucets come with a sheath around the horseshoe clip. The tube must be removed before the horseshoe-shaped ring can slide out. The sheath can be unscrewed or pulled off with pliers by grasping it and pulling towards you. After the sheath has been removed, grasp the tab on the horseshoe clip using pliers. Carefully slide it out by pulling to the side. These parts should remove easily.)

7) Now, you should see a plastic or brass cartridge that can be removed by pulling it out. If this is a Moen faucet, this is when you use the removal tool. Follow the directions found on the tool packaging. Be careful not to damage the faucet body itself during this process. Some faucet brands contain a plastic or brass ball here instead of a cartridge. Lift or pull this part out. Under the round ball you should see two small rubber seats and springs. Remove them. Remove them.

8) Once the old parts or cartridge are removed, it is a good idea to use a flashlight and peer inside the faucet where the old part used to live. See any pieces of debris or broken pieces of the old cartridge in there? If so, use needle nose pliers to remove it.

Install the new parts, and then reassemble the faucet. Replace all retaining clips and rings. If you have any spare parts, take the faucet apart and find out where they belong before turning on the water. Take your time, and you'll be fine

This is the most crucial step. After the faucet is reassembled, the water is back on and you have tested it to make sure it works well, show off your work to your spouse or friends. Watch their reactions as they marvel at how well the faucet works. Now YOU are the hero and not the plumber that you would have paid to make the repair.

The author does not accept any responsibility for the work performed by his readers. The plumbing repair articles were written to serve as a general guide for homeowners.

Sunbeam electric mattress pad is one of the best choices when it comes to increasing comfort during cold winter seasons. This mattress pad produces heat and distributes it all over your mattress so you can feel warm and comfortable even without layers of blankets.

These pads are fitted and placed on top of the primary mattress. There are electric circuits inside responsible for the distribution of heat. It comes with a hand-held controller that will allow the consumers easy access to its temperature settings. But because of its electric functions, faults and failures are likely to happen.

Here is how you can fix your sunbeam electric mattress pad:

Step 1: Check first to see if the heating performance of the pad has been compromised. The best way to do that is to fold it three times. This will let you feel the circuit inside the pad. Check with your hands if the cord has been properly connected to module of the mattress topper. Make sure it is not loose. After Good Old Appliance Service checking the connection, try plugging it into the outlet. Turn it up to the highest setting. If it doesn't produce heat after a few minutes, it means something is wrong with your mattress topper. However, you might also want to check the outlet if it is working properly. Test the outlet by plugging in another appliance.

Step 2: The pad will not produce heat when the power is out. You may need to restart it to test its ability to produce heat. Unplug and turn it off. Follow Step 1 again.

Step 3: Check the plug if one of the blades are damaged or twisted. Usually, this is the cause of the problem. The blades have to be straight. Make sure the blades fit the outlet perfectly. Some people tend to jam the plug to the outlet even though it does not fit right. Call an electrician to set up a new outlet close to your bed. Be sure to get the right fit so that you don't damage the pad by forcing the plug.

When you are not using your mattress topper, turn it off and unplug it. This will prevent the cords from deteriorating quickly. If the mattress does not heat up after seven minutes, turn it off right away. It means the cord came off from the module or the plug is not working properly.