One day a couple years ago I got the bright idea to fix my mother in law's shower for her as a Mother's Day present. The cold water knob on her 40 year old two handle fixture had broken off, been glued back on, broke back off, and... So now she had a small pair of vice grips she just left on the cartridge itself to use to turn cold on or off. I was a complete novice on plumbing, but love DIY projects and thought this shouldn't be to hard. Famous last words. After buying a new cartridge and getting it installed with a new knob, she was happy and I thought the matter was settled. It wasn't. A couple weeks later she tells me she had to fiddle with it to turn the water all the way off. I take a look, thinking it just needed the knob tightened back on. She evidently had drawn the same conclusion and had tried to do that herself, and stripped the inside plastic for the knob screw to grab onto. So another trip to the local hardware store and another $15 cartridge and install. Couple months go by, it happens again. This time I went looking for a cartridge with metal on the end instead of that super soft junk plastic for the screw to go into, thinking that'd fix it and if she messed with it again, it's metal so no problem. Only I couldn't find one, not here, not anywhere. Called Delta and asked, only one company still made the cartridges and that company made the one I had been buying. So bought another, then another, and then one day she was showering and the knob shot off with water shooting out forcefully everywhere! Luckily it didn't hit her when it happened and she knew enough to shut off the water main right away. But I was left now with a mess and a much more expensive Mother's Day project than I had meant to have to deal with. finally I figured out what kept going wrong. A small piece of the thread on the brass shower valve where the nut goes that holds the cartridge in place was worn down. So that meant replacing the shower valve. A trip to the local big box stores was immediately disappointing as the only two handle shower valves they carried were all made of plastic and still cost a minimum of $100. If I was going to open up a wall and have to hang new drywall and all that I was going to make damn sure that I wouldn't be putting a piece of junk in to replace it. I wanted the next one to last another 40 years. Finally I found out about Kingston Brass from here on Amazon. Sure, it was $50 more I think than what the plastic ones were, but $50 was a steal if it meant it'd be fixed once and for all. Reviews on the internet for the company all said the same thing: a newer, lesser known manufacturer but a quality product that uses real metal not plastic. Then the BIG SHOCK - Amazon Warehouse had one in "Like New" condition for - wait for it - $35! Unbelievable! I thought at that price, sure I'll buy it and worse case scenario it is missing pieces and I send it back. It said Like New, after all. The box arrived, and all the pieces were there and still wrapped in their original individual packaging! It installed quickly and easily, not a drop of water leaked, and finally, two years later and after quite a bit of time and money to fix a stupid cold water handle, her Mother's Day present was finally done. It looks fantastic, works great, uses less water but no obvious reduction in flow, and we are both very happy with the results. So buy with confidence. And the thing is, I've now noticed there are a lot of shower valves, kitchen and bathroom sick faucets, and other related hardware for sale in Amazon Warehouse at the same deep deep discount, all listed as "Like New" condition. I've since replaced a couple other things in her house, and been pleased with each purchase. So if you are a DIY'er on a budget, here is a great way to get something of excellent quality at a fraction of the price you'd expect!
