Kit Chrome Knob
Kit Chrome Knob
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Kitchen Faucet Parts
The parts that usually break in a kitchen faucet are the internal parts; in fact some of the parts are actually designed to fail, for a good reason. Just like the brass or bronze bushing on a motorized appliance, they are made to fail first to avoid damaging the more expensive shafting. In kitchen faucets, to protect the main body, the stem is designed using a softer metal like brass. As we open and close the faucet the brass stem wears, little by little, until the entire tread finally vanish and can no longer apply pressure to the rubber seal no matter how you turn it. When this happen, a leak occurs, and to fix it, the stem is needed to be replaced with a new one. Usually you can get a replacement faucet stem at low price, about less than $10, much cheaper than if you would buy the whole faucet.
The other kitchen faucet parts that usually wear or break is the rubber seal. Made of flexible soft material they are used to seal the valve mechanism inside the faucet. When you tighten or turn the knob to close it, the stem pushes it against the valve seat. Every time you close the faucet, the rubber seal is squeezed between the stem and the valve seat. Imagine how many times you do this in a day. Sooner or later, the rubber seal will lose its elasticity and become brittle, breaking into small pieces. When this happens, a leak will occur and no matter how we tighten the knob it will still leak because there's no more rubber seal to close it. Replacing the rubber seal is very easy, they usually attached to the end of the stem, held in place by a screw. To replace it you have to dismantle the top part of the faucet and remove the stem. Then remove the screw that is holding the rubber seal with a screw driver then insert the new rubber seal and put back the screw.
Most of the time when there's a faucet leak, replacing the rubber seal will fix it. Some people also do this because they want to save money, replacing only the rubber seal is very cheap compared to buying the whole set of repair kit. But sometimes it's not the only one causing it; it also might be the stem or a broken spring and valve seat. So, to make sure that you really fix it, some people replaces all the internal parts including the stem and the rubber seal using a kitchen faucet repair kit. Faucet repair kits usually include the stem, rubber seals or o-rings, seats or valve seats, spring, a special wrench, and sometimes it also includes the knob. On some brands an instruction manual is also included, complete with an exploded view and step by step instruction on how to dismantle and assemble the kitchen faucet.
There are also faucet parts that you can buy to bring back your kitchen faucet to its original or shinny look. These parts are called overhauling kit. Unlike repair kits which include internal parts, overhauling kit includes the external parts or the combination of the two. It includes a set of new knobs and trims with different finish like chrome, brass and gold plated finish. If you just renovated your kitchen, you can also change the look of your faucet to match the new décor instead of purchasing a new set of faucet which is very expensive not to mention the labor cost. When purchasing a kitchen faucet replacement parts it is recommended to buy an extra set or two if you have many faucet around your house, keep it in a safe place for a quick replacement next time you need it. Fixing your kitchen faucet by yourself will save you a great deal of money on labor cost but if you don't know what you are doing or if you don't have any experience doing them or if you don't have the proper plumbing tools, it is better to call for a professional plumber to avoid further damaging it.
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