Cross-posting this on the Home Improvement forum. I'm looking to replace 2 faucets and drain assemblies in a master bathroom. Even though I've never done it before, I'm tempted to do them myself (the instructions seem fairly straightforward). My main concern is that the plumbing is extremely old. For instance, the shut off valves are essentially locked up and won't turn. I had a plumber out a year ago for a different issue, and he wasn't able to get them to turn either.

We can shut off the water at the street when needed, but I'm still nervous that I may run into an issue during the replacement. I'd hate to pay what someone is likely to charge me to do this, but does anyone have a recommendation of someone in San Antonio?

You really need to get them replaced. That said, they can be tricky.

Are they soldered onto copper? If so, it takes a few tools and some knowledge to replace.

Are the valves threaded onto the supply line? Can you unscrew? If so, that's easy. shut the water off at the street, unscrew and replace.

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Are the valves threaded onto the supply line? Can you unscrew? If so, that's easy. shut the water off at the street, unscrew and replace.

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One of these might also help with the faucet bolts if it's tight up there...


They're awkward to use, but work.

hillcountryag86 said:

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You really need to get them replaced. That said, they can be tricky.

Are they soldered onto copper? If so, it takes a few tools and some knowledge to replace.

Are the valves threaded onto the supply line? Can you unscrew? If so, that's easy. shut the water off at the street, unscrew and replace.

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Now that I'm looking at it more closely, it looks like the lines from the current faucet aren't threaded onto the shut off valves, so I guess I'll need to replace those anyway.

We are doing some fairly minor updates in preparation to sell, but it looks like shut off valves are fairly cheap. I'll pick some up and give it a go.

If you haven't done it yet, get some PB blaster or something to spray/soak on the fittings. Put a throw away towel down, that stuff stinks and will stain. Let it sit a while and hit it again.

In our last big remodel, I changed out all of our fittings and several were frozen open or I couldn't close all the way. Took a while but got them changed out and it's not hard other than bending your body and shoulders into a pretzel. I teflon tape the hell out of everything, don't like pipe dope.

I was worried about shearing the copper, but it holds up pretty good.

Replacing the actual faucet themselves is pretty easy, just making sure you got a compatible replacement. All about access and having to do things on your back wrong handed most of the time. Get a nerf ball or something that you can throw across the room when you bark your knuckles or strain until your eyes bulge out.