Faucet Repair in Sultan, WA

Signs your faucet needs repair

• The handle is stiff, grinds, or you have to force it to turn.
• The handle spins without shutting off, or it came off in your hand.
• Water trickles out of one faucet while the others in the house are fine.
• Only hot or only cold comes out, or the temperature won't hold.
• The faucet squeals, hums or rattles when it's on.
• The whole faucet wobbles when you use it.
• Nothing comes out at all.

If your main problem is a drip or a leak, go to leaking faucet repair. It covers those in more detail.

Handle problems: stuck, loose or broken

A stiff handle usually means the cartridge inside is worn or coated with mineral buildup. Forcing it can crack the cartridge or strip the handle, so it's worth fixing before it gets worse.

A handle that spins or wobbles often has a stripped set screw or worn splines, the small teeth that grip the valve stem. Sometimes the handle alone can be replaced. If the stem is damaged too, the cartridge goes with it.

If the handle broke off and water is still running, turn off the shutoff valves under the sink before anything else.

Low water pressure at one faucet

When the rest of the house has good pressure and one faucet doesn't, the problem is almost always at that faucet. The usual causes, from most to least common:

1. A clogged aerator. The small screen at the tip of the spout catches grit and scale. Cleaning or replacing it often fixes weak flow in minutes.
2. Debris in the cartridge. This is common after water main work or a plumbing repair stirs up sediment.
3. A partly closed shutoff valve under the sink.
4. A kinked or failing supply line.

If every faucet in the house is weak, the cause is further up the line. The pro can tell you if it's something they handle or if you need a different kind of service.

No water coming from the faucet

If one faucet has gone completely dry, check the shutoffs under the sink first. Someone may have closed them. If they're open and nothing comes out, the cartridge may be jammed or a supply line blocked. If no faucet in the house has water, call the City of Sultan water line or check your well pump. That isn't a faucet problem.

In a cold snap, a sink on an outside wall can freeze where the pipes run through the cabinet. Don't use an open flame to thaw it. Open the cabinet doors to let warm air in and call.

Only hot or only cold

On a single-handle faucet, the cartridge mixes hot and cold. When it wears, one side can stop flowing or the temperature can drift. On a two-handle faucet, one side's stem or cartridge has usually failed. If the problem is at every faucet, the water heater is the more likely cause.

Noisy faucet

A squeal when you turn the handle usually points to a worn washer or dry O-ring. A rattle or hammering noise can come from a loose part inside the faucet or from pressure changes in the pipes. A pro can tell which one by listening and opening up the faucet.

Loose faucet

If the whole faucet rocks or turns on the sink, the mounting nut underneath has worked loose. It's a small fix, but don't put it off. A faucet that moves every day strains the supply lines and can start a leak you won't see until the cabinet is wet.

Cartridge and valve replacement

Most modern faucets have a cartridge, a single part that controls both flow and temperature. Older two-handle faucets use stems with rubber washers. When either one wears out, you get drips, stiff handles or temperature problems. Replacing the cartridge with the right part for your brand is often all a faucet needs.

It helps to know the brand of your faucet. Look for a logo on the handle or base. Many brands sell cartridges made just for their faucets, and a generic part may not fit.

Keeping a faucet working longer

• Unscrew and rinse the aerator once or twice a year.
• Turn handles gently to off. Cranking them hard wears the cartridge faster.
• Look under the sink every few months for damp spots or drips on the supply lines.
• Turn the shutoff valves off and back on once a year so they don't seize.

Repair or replace?

Repair makes sense when the faucet is in good shape and parts are easy to get. Replacement is usually better when the body is corroded or cracked, parts are discontinued, or you've already fixed it more than once. See when to replace a faucet for more.

Faucet repair across Sultan

In older homes near downtown Sultan, it's common to find two-handle faucets and shutoff valves that haven't been turned in years. In the newer neighborhoods north of town, builder-grade faucets tend to need their first cartridge sooner than you'd expect. Both are routine fixes. Read more about faucet service across Sultan.